National flexible rail season tickets launch

21/06/2021

Government programmes

New national flexible rail tickets will be available to commuters across England next week.

The launch of flexible season tickets is the first step in the reform of the railways, as part of the recently launched Williams-Shapps Plan for Rail.

The paperless tickets will allow travel on any eight days in a 28-day period, with passengers able to tap smartcards or scan mobiles at the station, removing the need to select the days of travel in advance.

Commuters can visit an updated online ‘season ticket calculator’, which will point people to the best tickets for them based on their journey, working pattern and individual needs, said Department for Transport (DfT).

Transport secretary Grant Shapps said: “Our railways work best when they are reliable, rapid and affordable.

“As we kickstart the biggest reforms to our railways in a generation, flexible season tickets are the first step. They give us greater freedom and choice about how we travel, simpler ticketing and a fairer fare.

“With a season ticket calculator to see which option works best for you, and a book with confidence guarantee to make journeys stress-free, the future of fares is flexible.”

Robert Nisbet, director of Nations and Regions at the Rail Delivery Group, said: “We’ve worked with government to introduce the new Flexi Season ticket, to give commuters the freedom and flexibility to divide their time between home and the office.

“The rail industry is helping people travel and book with confidence by providing better journey information, boosting cleaning and helping them change a booked journey fee-free should their circumstances change.”

The season tickets go on sale from today (June 21), in use from June 28.

Keith Williams on need for joined-up transport system

Keith Williams, independent chair of the Williams Rail Review and co-author of the Williams-Shapps Plan for Rail explained the importance of a joined-up transport system at the recent Virtual Smart Transport Conference.

If you missed the session you can still catch up via the on-demand service.

Those who have already registered for the event simply need to log on to the Smart Transport Conference website to watch any of the sessions again.

Watch now: Connecting Policy To Solutions Virtual Conference 2021

Smart Transport Conference returned on June 8th & 9th, to facilitate pivotal discussions on the future of transport.

The UK’s most senior public and private sector transport leaders discussed the impact of Covid-19, achieving the Government’s decarbonisation ambitions, the need for more efficient living and better health, and much more.

Kwasi Kwarteng, secretary of state at the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), who spoke on BEIS's approach to decarbonising transport, particularly the electrification of the vehicle industry. Watch his presentation below: