Railcards: I Want One!

The plethora of different tickets available is a well known feature of Britain’s privatised railway system.

Whether this is a Good Thing or a Bad thing largely depends on whether or not you’ve just managed to get hold of a Birmingham – London ticket for £5 or whether your sudden need to get to Newcastle-upon-Tyne for a family emergency has been met by a bill for £190.00.

But one feature of the railway system that can always help knock a few pounds off is the Railcard. Now once upon a time these came in versions for Senior Citizens (I think they may even have been called “Old People” in those non-PC days) and for Students.

Over the years, they’ve appeared for more and more groups. All “Young People” (ie those under 25; PC doesn’t seem to apply in this direction!); the Disabled; members of HM Forces; “Families”; and so on.

However, I can’t help wishing that there was a Railcard for people like me, who use the railways quite often and would do so more if this loyalty was rewarded with access to discounted fares. Now plainly, this would have to be set at a realistic price. I can hardly expect to be offered the same discounts as the other groups mentioned. But it would be an encouragement to travel by train more often. A bit like the way in which actually owning a car encourages you to use it since you’ve already paid a set of fixed costs.

Some countries, such as Switzerland (unsurprisingly) and Germany, already have such a card. Indeed, so does Britain, if you happen to live in the South East and can thus buy a Network Railcard.

So why can’t the rest of us get something similar?