Commuting (Newcastle)

Hi,

I am thinking about commuting from Newcastle to Durham by train and would like to know if anyone has suggestions/experience in this field.

AFAIK there is no combined ticket for public- and train transport available.
There are apparently season tickets available but I could not find out whether it is possible to take a bike on the train for free.

Also, does anyone know a good website to look for accomodation? I found starflats.co.uk but this is not very popular it seems.

Cheers,
Holger