War chest to win back trust in rail
Compensation plan after timetable chaos
TRANSPORT BOSSES are to hand out £3.5m in free tickets and discounted fares to compensate rail passengers across the North who suffered during last year’s timetable chaos, The Yorkshire Post can reveal.
Six million pounds of central government funds were allocated to compensate regular northern commuters caught up in the widespread delays and disruption, but nearly two-thirds remains to be spent because uptake was lower than anticipated.
Passengers across the North suffered weeks of delayed or cancelled trains after the May timetable change, prompting The Yorkshire Post and other northern newspapers to issue an unprecedented call to action in a day of joint front page editorials.
More than a million hours were lost and the economic impact was estimated at a minimum of £38m.
A leaked document seen by this newspaper sets out how Rail North, the public body which manages the North’s two biggest rail operators, now plans to hand out £1m each in ticket giveaways for customers of Northern and TransPennine Express.
Another £1m will be allocated to offer discounted travel to parts of the North hardest hit by the disruption and a further £500,000 to encourage season ticket holders to move to smart ticketing with sweeteners of up to £50 per person.
Officials hope the special compensation schemes, which have yet to be made public, will encourage rail passengers to return to the parts of the North dependent on their tourist or leisure industries.
Barry White, chief executive of Transport for the North, said: “This further phase of compensation recognises the impact on passengers and businesses caused by the disruption experienced by passengers and is designed to help those areas hardest hit by last year’s events and encourage people back onto trains.
“Our hope is it will bring direct benefits to a wide range of people and businesses across the North through a rolling programme of initiatives.”
Labour MP Paula Sherriff, representing Dewsbury, welcomed the compensation and said she hoped the schemes would “go some way to get people back using our railways”. But she criticised the continuing poor performance of rail services and called for “proper accountability”, adding: “Local people overwhelmingly want us to take back control of our railways.”
And Northern Powerhouse Partnership director Henri Murison said the scheme represented a missed opportunity to extend rail discounts for 16 to 18-yearolds to make it easier for young apprentices in the North to get to work.