Rail commuters to get flexible season tickets in back to office bid
Commuters are set to be offered flexible season rail tickets as a part of the government’s bid to try and get people back to offices by summer.
The new flexi-tickets will reportedly be introduced by 21 June when England Covid restrictions are due to end and could save commuters hundreds of pounds a year.
The tickets will be able to be used two or three times a week at prices discounted from the previous season ticket fares, according to the Sunday Telegraph.
A Department for Transport source told the Telegraph that the tickets would be available in the first half of this year.
“We have written to all rail operators to ask that they begin immediate work on developing a flexible season ticket,” they said.
“These new flexible season tickets, reflecting modern working lives, will be introduced across England this year, available to all operators overseen by the Department for Transport.”
It comes as UK rail fares are set to rise by 2.4 per cent tomorrow as a part of a yearly increase.
The UK taxpayer has helped prop up rail companies this year, with £10bn set aside to help struggling service providers.
Rail numbers dropped considerably last year as Britons spent much of the year in lockdown, forcing the government to effectively nationalise the industry in the short-term.
Regarding tomorrow’s planned price increase, a Department for Transport spokesman said: “Passengers returning to the railway deserve punctual and reliable journeys at a fair price.
“This is the lowest increase in four years despite unprecedented taxpayer support for the rail industry during the pandemic of around £10 billion, and billions more being spent on new infrastructure.
“By delaying the change in fares, passengers who needed to renew season tickets were able to get a better deal, and we will set our further plans to offer cheaper, more flexible tickets for commuters in due course.”