Andy Burnham is considering extending access to railcards as part of early discussions on how to cut train ticket prices, The Mirror understands. The Prime Minister has said cutting rail fares is in his “sights”, with some prices “outrageously” high at the moment.
16-17 Saver Railcard extension
In a signal of intent last week, he announced plans to extend the 16-17 Saver Railcard so youngsters can access it up until the day before their 19th birthday, instead of it expiring when they turn 18. The change will come into force on August 17, benefitting thousands of students with 50% off rail tickets.
Government sources said discussions are taking place on extending other railcards, with talks at a “very early stage”. Officials are looking at a range of options around how to tackle the high cost of prices that go further than the rail freeze introduced this year, the Mirror has been told.
Think tanks urge national railcard
Two influential left-wing think tanks are now urging Mr Burnham to expand the network south east railcard into a national railcard. The railcard, which costs £35 a year, gives train users a third off most rail fares for journeys in London and the south east. Anyone 16 years and above can buy one.
Elsewhere in the country, railcards exist for particular age groups including adults aged up to 30 or those over 60, or groups including disabled people or veterans, but there is not a universal discount card. It means adults aged 31 to 59 are unable to access this discount outside the south east.
IPPR North director backs broader railcard
Zoë Billingham, director of IPPR North, who informally advised Mr Burnham on an unpaid sabbatical this summer, said it is not “coherent” that the universal railcard only exists in one part of the country. She told The Mirror: “I do think there would be a sensible question at this stage that says, well, given the kind of unfairness from the passengers' perspective, from the public's perspective of just having a network railcard that covers the south east, why shouldn't that be something that's offered more broadly?
“So I would be very supportive of the government looking at that for the country as a whole. Fundamentally, transport is about jobs, it's about connecting people socially. But it also helps the government with its climate goals, getting people off cars and onto more green modes of transport. So it ticks a lot of boxes and so I'd be really supportive of the government moving in that direction.”
Ms Billingham added that as the network railcard is already an established scheme, an extension of it could be “mobilised quickly”. This compares to longer term structural fare reforms that are likely to be looked at as part of rail nationalisation under Great British Railways.
NEF: 'obvious opportunity' to equalise
Hannah Peaton, deputy chief executive at the New Economics Foundation (NEF), echoed that an extension of the southeast railcard is an “obvious opportunity” to make the system more equal across the country. She told The Mirror: “If you take an off-peak, non-advanced journey from London to Milton Keynes, it costs around £23/24, and that's similar to the cost of a trip from Manchester to Leeds.
“But for no real reason, the Milton Keynes trip is eligible for the one third discount, and the Manchester/Leeds one isn't. Which, if you take that in the context of Burnham being very specific that he really wants to ensure equivalent living standards in all parts of the UK, it just feels like an obvious opportunity to equalise it.”
NEF, which last month produced a report looking at bus and rail fares, estimates the policy would generate £425million in consumer savings. Its modelling suggests it would have a net cost of £270m in the first year, falling to £120m over the long-term, however it said new ticket sales and card sales would to a large extent offset the costs of the scheme.
Ms Peaton added: “I suppose the other really exciting thing about the policy is it effectively pays for itself…So it feels like a no-brainer. It's a chance to take an existing benefit that, for no real reason, only applies to the south east.”
Burnham's cost of living focus
In an interview with The Mirror earlier this month, Mr Burnham said the cost of living is at the top of his priorities list. "I think rail fares are too high, outrageously so in some instances," he added. "So that's something that's in my sights."
Mr Burnham used his first days in Downing Street to roll out a rapid-fire list of cost of living announcements. VAT will be slashed from electricity bills from October, bus fares will be capped at £2 and pubs, social clubs and live music venues will get a 20% cut to business rates from April.
At last year’s Budget, former Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced a freeze on rail fares for the first time in 30 years, though prices of tickets still remain high. Announcing the 16-17 Saver Railcard extension last week, Rail Minister Lord Peter Hendy said: "This kind of common-sense change is exactly what passengers should expect from the railway."
