BBC News: Simpler rail fares to take effectPage last updated at 23:12 GMT, Wednesday, 23 April 2008 00:12 UK
Source:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7364127.stm
Measures to make buying rail tickets simpler and easier to understand will be introduced from next month.
New fare categories mean that rail travellers will have to choose only between three ticket types.
From 18 May, an array of discounted advance purchase fares will be known as Advance fares and railcard discounts will apply on these tickets.
From 7 September, tickets bought on the day of travel will be divided into two groups - Anytime and Off-peak.
The Association of Train Operating Companies says the complicated range of tickets currently available is one of the biggest complaints among passengers.
At present, some train companies can have as many as 12 different ticket types ranging from full-fare open returns to cut-price book-ahead fares.
"This is the biggest shake-up in the fares and ticketing system for many years and we want passengers to take advantage of it and also encourage more people to take the train," said David Mapp, Atoc commercial director.
ATOC said the new ticket structure will not result in price increases and the regulation of fares, including the 40% that are price-capped on an annual basis, is unaffected by the changes.
The changes were first outlined in the government's rail White Paper last year.
Liberal Democrat transport spokesman Norman Baker said the fare overhaul was a sensible move but said more clarity was needed.
"It would help everyone if train companies made their advance ticket policies public so that travellers were clear about what bargain tickets are available and when and how they can best buy them."
Campaign for Better Transport said it welcomed the new structure but urged the government to take action to reduce the cost of tickets, especially for last-minute journeys.
