Third of 16 to 25-year-olds do not have a railcard – survey

A 16 to 25 railcard costs £30 for one year or £70 for three years (Andrew Matthews/PA) (PA Archive)

More than a third (36%) of 16 to 25-year-olds do not have a digital railcard designed for their age group to make savings on train journeys, a survey has found.

Collectively, they could be missing out on more than £450 million in rail travel savings each year, according to the research commissioned by Trainline.

The UK regions where people are potentially missing out the most are London (£162 million), the Midlands (£37 million) and Scotland (£36 million), researchers estimated.

We want to raise awareness around the great savings young people can be making

Milena Nikolic, Trainline

Those without a digital 16 to 25 railcard, which is also sometimes called a student railcard or young persons railcard, expect to travel at least six times per month typically from September.

Many people did not realise they were eligible for the card, which allows them to save a third on train journeys subject to terms and conditions, according to the survey.

A 16 to 25 railcard costs £30 for one year or £70 for three years and so people will need to weigh up how often they are likely to travel and how much it will cost to see if the benefits are likely to outweigh the cost of the railcard.

Milena Nikolic, chief technology officer at Trainline, said: “With many young people set to go back to their place of education or work this September, we want to raise awareness around the great savings young people can be making simply by signing up to a digital 16 to 25 railcard.”