How loyalty scheme ‘could save struggling system’

TRAIN companies should introduce loyalty schemes to save Britain’s struggling railways from the impact of increased home working, a think tank report has said.

The Centre for Policy Studies (CPS) said the number of daily commuters at peak times is at 15 per cent of the pre-pandemic total and is down 50 per cent on Fridays.

It warned the network would need to be ‘radically overhauled’ to respond to customer demands for ‘freedom and flexibility’, with a greater emphasis on long-haul leisure travel. This should be accompanied by a simplification of the ticketing system to correct the ‘cognitive overload’ caused by having 2,700 different ticket types across the country.

The CPS’s Tony Lodge said: ‘The pandemic fundamentally changed the nature of rail in the UK. The Government has the opportunity – through the new Great British Railways body – to radically overhaul the current model to make sure that it is fit for purpose and able to meet modern passenger demands.

‘If the Government doesn’t implement these reforms, there is no certainty that rail will have a future and taxpayers will be forced to foot the bill for its decline.’

London North Eastern Railway – which operates between the English and Scottish capitals – already offers a reward scheme that gives passengers 2 per cent credit for every £1 they spend.

Great Western Railway had a partnership with Nectar but this has now ended. Virgin has a rewards scheme for passengers who book via Virgin Red.

A spokesman for the Department for Transport said: ‘We have no current plans to introduce loyalty schemes but Great British Railways will act as the guiding mind of the industry and have the ability to make decisions on future schemes to reward loyalty.

‘It’s absolutely right to say the railways need reforming, that’s why the WilliamsShapps Plan for Rail is rolling out the biggest changes to rail in a generation.’