Yahoo Finance Harper scraps ‘Great British Railway’ ticket plan in about-turn
Mark Harper, the Transport Secretary, has scrapped plans for a Government-backed ticketing app that promised rail passengers an easier way to receive refunds.
The proposal for a new “Great British Railways” website and smartphone app has been shelved just two years after it was introduced by Mr Harper’s predecessor Grant Shapps.
At the time of its rollout, Mr Shapps vowed to provide a taxpayer-backed ticketing sales service that could compete with private companies such as Trainline.
He said the Great British Railways website would sell tickets and provide a single compensation system to make it easier for customers to access information and apply for refunds.
However, Mr Harper has ditched the plan as he prioritises collaboration with the private sector.
Mr Harper laid out his priorities in a speech earlier this year: “Operating the railways is currently financially unsustainable and it isn’t fair to continue asking taxpayers to foot the bill.”
He said he wanted Great British Railways to be an “arm’s-length body” with less political involvement: “The role of ministers is to provide strategic direction and be accountable to Parliament.
“It is not the role of ministers to pore over operational decisions.”
The proposed shake-up, which vowed to “simplify the current mass of confusing tickets”, sparked a 34pc drop in Trainline’s share price at the time.
This prompted the company to seek assurances from Whitehall over whether the service would not undercut its commission payments from train operators.
Under the current system, passengers can buy rail tickets from companies online and at railway stations, as well as through National Rail Enquiries.
Trainline announced the Government’s policy reversal in an update to investors on Thursday: “Trainline notes that the UK Government Department for Transport has today announced it has withdrawn proposals to create a new Great British Railways ticket retailing website and app.”
Trainline shares had jumped 16pc by Friday morning.
The Department for Transport said: “We are confirming that we are not pursuing plans to deliver a centralised Great British Railways online rail ticket retailer.
“Train operators will continue to retail to passengers online alongside existing third-party retailers while we develop measures to spur further competition in the online rail ticket retail market to make things better for passengers.”
