Rail industry proposes weekly fare caps, more mobile tickets

The days of carrying a stack of orange printed tickets for a single rail journey could soon be over, as the industry announced a big overhaul of its ticketing strategy.

Proposals being introduced by the Rail Delivery Group, which represented the private train operators, the state-owned infrastructure authority Network Rail, and the Department for Transport, include a full expansion of mobile ticketing to all services within five years, as well as weekly fare caps for regular commuters.

The weekly cap would work similarly to urban fare caps, such as that on London’s Oyster system, and would mean travellers did not need to pay for their season ticket on days they were not travelling, benefitting part-time workers and those who sometimes work from home.

Train operators also want to provide a “best fare guarantee”, which would mean customers automatically paid the cheapest fare available at the time of buying a ticket, rather than having to trawl various fare options to find a deal.

Among the more radical of the proposals, however, is the cancellation of peak and off-peak fares, making journeys in the busy morning period slightly cheaper and those through the day slightly more expensive.

The strategy behind that was to encourage travellers off the busy services that currently run just after the peak period ends, and onto the less busy trains operating towards the end of peak hours.

According to the Rail Delivery Group, its proposals are revenue-neutral, meaning there would be no need for higher average ticket prices, or any extra funding from Westminster.

The proposals from the industry come before the release of a government review into the railways, being conducted by former British Airways chief executive Keith Williams.

That report, which was commissioned following months of misery for thousands of commuters after operators botched the introduction of a new timetable last May, is due for release in the autumn.