Britain’s railways are getting a massive overhaul. The government is putting itself back in charge and passenger railway services are going back into public ownership, baby (find out which three services are being nationalised first here).
‘Great British Railways’ is a scheme to renationalise and simplify the UK’s rail system, which unions say will see our trains ‘run as a public service, not for private profit’. Now, one of the first steps towards that vision has been revealed.
The government is introducing a new train ticket selling site, which aims to simplify the process of booking trains with different operators.
According to the Department for Transport, the retailer will bring together the ticket websites of individual train operators and ‘work alongside a thriving private sector retail market, where all rail retailers can compete in an open and fair manner’.
Right now, if you don’t go on rail operators’ own sites, the likelihood is you’re getting your train tickets from Trainline. At the prospect of a new competitor, the company says it welcomes the government’s ‘unequivocal commitment to a competitive retail market, underpinned by a level playing field, and recognition of the value and innovation that brings to rail users’.
The exact details of the site are still yet to be decided. DfT said it’ll be working with the industry and the private sector to develop a proper plan. It won’t be up and running until late 2026 at the earliest.
Train travel with Time Out
In other recent news from our railways, Eurostar ticket prices could be more affordable from April, these three northern English cities will soon be linked by more frequent train services, one of the UK’s busiest train routes is getting 6 million more seats, and Britain’s busiest train line is will have closures for the next 10 years.
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