In message , at 23:11:49 on Fri, 6
Nov 2009, Tim Ward remarked:
Presumably in this case there's one train that they want to send the first
wave of cheap ticket people off to London on, and the following train the
next wave.

That's a change, then. For years my experience was that the next train after
the first cheap train was the one most likely to be cancelled.

I don't know about the cancellation issue, but having what I think they
call "shoulder peak" is increasingly common.

I'll quote the Nottingham-London route because that timetable does have
multiple colours.

Trains up to and including the 8.02 (arr 10.00) are full price.
The 8.28 (arr 10.19), 9.02 and 9.28 (arr 11.19) are "off peak"
The 10.02 (arr 12.03) and later trains are "super off peak".

There are correspondingly different blackout periods for returning home
in the evening for the two types of off-peak ticket.
--
Roland Perry