With 55 million different fares currently available in the UK, industry bodies are urging ministers to simplify ticketing and end anomalies like split ticketing. Could a door-to-door system be the solution the industry is looking for?
In May this year, Uber launched a partnership with Virgin Trains that enables passengers to purchase a ride from their doorstep to any destination in the UK via a combination of taxi and train services. The move, which Virgin Trains says is an attempt to encourage travellers to take trains instead of their cars, is an opportunity to test the impact a door-to-door ticketing formula could have on the UK’s rail fares system.
The need to update the country’s ticketing system has been on the agenda for a while. Most recently, train operators’ union the Rail Delivery Group (RDG) and passenger watchdog Transport Focus joined forces to launch a consultation on the issue.