Better information on fares and simpler ticketing has helped rail
passengers save money and improved the overall travel experience
this year, Rail Minister has announced.
A ‘one year on’
update on the Rail fares and ticketing
action plan was published today (21 December 2017),
which looked at the progress made since the plan was launched in
December 2016. The action plan brought the government, train
companies, the consumer group Which? and the independent
passenger watchdog Transport Focus together to help passengers
identify and buy the cheapest and most suitable train tickets.
The progress report noted that a cut-price ticket that passengers
can buy up to 15 minutes before traveling and greater flexibility
on forgotten railcards have been key achievements of the action
plan launched in December 2016.
Rail Minister said:
Our aim was to make it easier for passengers to find the best
value fares, offer greater flexibility when travelling and
remove the complexity from the whole ticket buying process,
which can sometimes leave people scratching their heads.
Working with the train companies and consumer groups has helped
us make some really positive changes, and work will continue
into the new year to improve ticket vending machines and bring
forward fare pilots, to ensure buying the right ticket is
simple, easy and straightforward.
Targets achieved in the plan include:
- in March, new rules were introduced to allow passengers who
had forgotten their railcards to claim a refund if they ended up
having to pay more
- in May, train operators committed to cutting jargon on
tickets, making it easier for passengers to choose the best
ticket for their journey - since then, more than 200,000
instances of confusing language and abbreviations have been
removed from tickets
- by September 9 train operators had introduced the ‘Advance
Purchase On Day’ (APOD) ticket, allowing passengers to buy a
discounted ticket up to 15 minutes before their journey, where
previously they had only been able to buy it up to the day before
- since then more than a million have been sold, far exceeding
expectations
Alex Hayman, Which? Managing Director of Public Markets, said:
The action plan has shown that the rail industry can deliver
changes to the ticketing system quickly.
Good progress has been made towards making it less confusing
and complex for passengers, but the government and industry
must continue to deliver improvements that help passengers to
choose the best tickets for their journey.
Paul Plummer, Chief Executive of RDG, which represents the rail
industry, said:
The partnership railway is working together with a long-term
plan to change and improve the railway. We have made a
commitment to increase customer satisfaction by improving the
passenger experience overall.
A key part of this includes simpler ticketing information,
quicker journeys and better value-for-money for our customers.
We will continue to work with government and others to get this
right.
, chief executive of the
independent watchdog Transport Focus, said:
Passengers will be pleased to see the progress made so far,
including advance fares now available on the day of travel, and
more discretion shown when railcards have been forgotten. We
now look forward to seeing further wins for passengers from
wider reform of the complicated issues.
