End of line for fines as railcards go digital

FINES for forgetting your railcard could soon become a thing of the past, as they are about to become accessible on smartphones for first time.

National Rail is ending the need to carry a paper railcard by allowing people to buy them online and download them onto a smartphone via an app.

The digital 16-25 Railcard and Network Railcard are already available and will be followed shortly by the Family & Friends and Two Together Railcards.

Senior and Disabled Persons Railcards will also be available by the end of the year, National Rail said.

Plans for a “millennial” railcard for 26 to 30-year-olds, entitling them to a third off all train journeys, were leaked last week.

The new card will be trialled by Greater Anglia Railways from December, and will be rolled out nationally early next year, according to documents.

Jyoti Bird, a director at National Rail, said: “The introduction of digital railcards is the latest example of train companies working together using technology to make rail travel easier.

“The money customers save through travel, and additional railcard benefits, means they have more to spend in the places they go.”