News

• This week the British public can vote for their favourite railway station in the World Cup of Stations 2021
• 48 stations from across Britain will compete in a series of Twitter polls
• Tournament seeks to find the station and staff who have played their role in supporting their local area to recover from the pandemic

The Office of Rail and Road (ORR) has today released figures showing 182 million rail journeys were made between April and June 2021 (Q1 2021/22). This is more than double the previous quarter (Q4 2020/21) of 80 million journeys, and more than five times the 35 million journeys made in April to June 2020 (Q1 2020/21).

The Rail Delivery Group wrote to two newspapers this week about the improvements that the private sector delivered over the last 25 years, in partnership with the public sector, and how getting reform right will be crucial to supporting the country's recovery from the pandemic.

• New research from the rail industry and University College London (UCL) neuroscientists reveals that travelling by train offers psychological benefits for both wellbeing and brain function
• People who use their commute to prepare for the day and mentally disengage from work on the way home can experience less stress, anxiety and improved productivity
• Improved mental health (48%), work/life balance (46%), productivity (46%), motivation (47%) and fitness levels (51%) are some of the positive effects people are expecting to experience as they head back to their workplace
• To inspire commuters to make the most of their ‘me-time’ on their train journey and get more from their commute, the rail industry is giving commuters access to hundreds of FutureLearn online courses with a free upgrade, hot drinks, tastecard memberships and exclusive discounts at nationalrail.co.uk/commuter

Figures released today by the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) show that freight carried by rail in the three-month period April to June has increased by 36.5% compared to the same period last year, demonstrating a strong recovery since the start of the pandemic 

• Rail industry launches ‘We Mean Green’ campaign to encourage people to take the train, and businesses to consider rail freight 
• On World Car Free Day, and in the run up to COP26, the classic double arrow rail logo is being given a green makeover to capture and convey the green benefits of train travel 

• One passenger train takes on average 500 cars off our roads and one freight train 76 lorries 

• Keith Williams, co-author of the Williams-Shapps plan for rail, says that there will never be a better opportunity for fares reform than now
• Andy Bagnall, Director General of the Rail Delivery Group, says the upcoming Comprehensive Spending Review will be “critically important” to deliver long-heralded reform, highlighting that the government’s white paper “wills the ends but not the means” to deliver the changes passengers want on fares
• Remarks made at a high-profile Institute for Government event which looks at how the government will implement the biggest rail reforms in a generation

• With many workers set to return to offices this autumn, new research highlights how a significant reduction in commuting by train could damage city centres and high streets
• Train commuting is currently just 33% of pre-pandemic levels, latest industry figures show, while car journeys have reached pre-pandemic levels
• New research finds a 20% shift from rail to road would lead to 300 million extra hours of traffic congestion, enough to watch everything on Netflix 8,000 times
• Data shows train commuters are vital to city centres and high streets, spending a total of £30 billion per year

• National Rail breaks new ground in travel information with the launch of Alert Me by WhatsApp service for all UK rail passengers
• Service uses AI and prediction technology developed by Zipabout and integrated with WhatsApp to generate real-time personalised journey updates for passengers before they head to the station
• Passengers can also opt-in to receive free coffees and newspapers as part of a retail pilot that rewards customers for travelling by train