Train passengers using the East Coast Main Line should find buying a ticket less complicated after operator LNER scrapped most return tickets on its route from this weekend (June 11/12).
London North Eastern Railway (LNER) has simplified its tickets into just three options following an expanded trial of single leg pricing. From now on, passengers will be able to to mix and match different types of tickets to get better value, as Anytime Return, Super Off-Peak Return and Off-Peak Return tickets have been discontinued.
From now on, the only tickets on sale on the route will be:
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Up to now, Britain’s outdated train ticketing system means many return fares were only £1 more than single fares, meaning that passengers often cannot save money if cheaper Advance tickets for specific services are only available for one direction of their return journey. It was devised in the 20th century by British Rail for different times and without the concept of online booking.
The use of “single leg pricing” removes the anomaly of some single tickets being almost as expensive as a return ticket and means passengers can more easily choose when to travel. LNER is the first operator to change to single-leg pricing and although the new fares have been available to buy from last month, they could only be used from Saturday, June 11 after a trial on the route.
Off-peak tickets are much more flexible than advance tickets, since they can be used on a wide range of trains. Between Durham and London, for example, until Saturday, the off-peak single cost £163, with a return priced at only £1 more. It is now £83, a saving of 49 per cent. When the trial started, people travelling between Berwick and Peterborough were charged £139, and will now pay £73.
Rail ticketing has gone unreformed outside London since the mid-1990s and the new system should offer savings for commuters travelling fewer than five days a week or working flexible hours, according to the Rail Delivery Group. Its research found eight out of 10 backed changes to the current system and separate researchcommissioned by LNER, found 61 per cent of customers were in favour of single leg pricing being extended across all LNER routes.
LNER, which carries more than 20 million passengers a year, hopes that the new policy will tackle the problem of passengers shunning the railways because they are confused by the range of fares. Research by the Rail Delivery Group found that more than one in three people for whom the train is an option were put off by the complexity of fares.
The Department for Transport took over control of LNER’s operations in June 2018 following the failure of the Virgin Trains East Coast franchise, and has been trialling the use of “single leg pricing” on selected routes since 2020.
LNER has also become the first train company to make tickets available six months in advance – with the aim of extending this to a year. Its “deal finder” allows passengers to set a maximum budget for their journey - and then receive a series of options for different days out.
Mark Smith, the international rail guru known as The Man in Seat 61, and a former British Rail manager, told The Independent: “Single-leg pricing is definitely the way forward – it should be part of a complete reform of rail fares which should apply across the network. It removes the current penalty for circular or open-jaw journeys, and makes it far easier to display ticket choices for an outward and a return trip on self-service channels such as website and ticket machines. I hope that its success on LNER will lead to its adoption nationwide.”
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LNER managing director David Horne said: “The expansion of single leg pricing will mean almost all of our customers will benefit from simpler fares and have the power to mix and match to get the best value fares. We believe that making fares simpler, smarter and fairer will encourage more people to choose rail, making a green and sustainable travel choice. Alongside our successful innovations from our legendary customer service to our industry leading digital products, LNER remains at the forefront of transforming rail.”
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