'Millennial' railcard will finally be rolled out in the new year

The Rail Delivery Group has announced that the "millennial" railcard will be available to all passengers aged 26 to 30 in the new year, and once launched will be here to stay.

Many were hoping that the card would go on sale before Christmas to save on holiday journeys but the launch date has now been announced as midday on 2nd January 2019. A spokesperson from Rail Delivery Group said: "We intended to launch the 26-30 Railcard by the end of the year, given how timings have worked out this would mean launching it over a bank holiday. When the 26-30 Railcard goes on sale we want to be able to provide the best possible experience to our customers, which is why it will go on sale at midday on 2nd January.” 

The railcard will enable travellers to save a third on most fares across the UK for ￡30 a year and be the first of its kind to offer discounts to solo travellers who are not "young persons" or seniors. Railcards for people with disabilities and those in the armed forces also exist. 

News of its full roll-out follows widespread anger in March when only a small number of the cards were made available for trial. The National Rail website crashed as many of the 4.5 million eligible customers tried to get their hands on just 10,000 cards.

Chancellor Philip Hammond said in his budget speech in November last year that the railcards would give "4.5 million more young people a third off their rail fares" but as hundreds of thousands missed out on the discount card, there were fears that the scheme would be scrapped. 

The initiative was seen as a way to support young people with stagnant incomes affording the ever-rising cost of rail travel. The Government keeping its promise will appease fears expressed by campaigners earlier in the year that failure to launch the railcards in full would send a message to young people that the Government "simply doesn't care" about them.

Angus Hanton, co-founder at the Intergenerational Foundation, said in March: “Struggling millennial workers facing low pay, poor prospects and high rents, were promised this railcard in the budget. By withdrawing this promise, the government would be sending yet another message to younger generations that they simply don't care. This is in stark contrast to the generosity of freedom cards and other perks given to pensioners who want to travel."

Jacqueline Starr, managing director of the Rail Delivery Group, said: “Britain’s rail companies are excited to announce that the National Rail 26-30 Railcard will be available across the country before the end of the year. It means more young people can explore Britain for less using our trains and benefit from saving a third on rail travel, making it cheaper to get out and enjoy the seaside or visit family and friends.”

While the Rail Delivery Group believes that the discount card will save customers an “average ￡125 a year on off-peak rail journeys”, some expect to save much more. Sarah Cowan, who managed to purchase a rail card in March, said at the time: "This will make a huge difference to the cost of trips... all my family and close friends live in either Yorkshire or Lancashire, so it costs a lot just trying to keep up-to-date with each others’ lives.”

The March trial followed a smaller pilot run in East Anglia in December last year. It was reported that “those taking part in the trial took approximately six leisure journeys a month, covering an average of 400 miles".

According to the Rail Delivery Group, “more than four million existing Railcard customers save almost ￡600 million a year on rail travel. The 26-30 Railcard is the seventh Railcard to launch since 1974".

The digital-only nature of the railcard - no physical card is issued - has led to complaints that customers are susceptible to fines should their phones be lost or their battery die.

The Rail Delivery Group defended the first digital-only railcard saying: “Once downloaded customers can start travelling (and saving) straight away, with no need to wait for the post. If their phone runs out of battery or gets lost it can be swapped to another mobile device.”

Time will tell as to whether the practicalities of the digital switch are effective, but under new industry rules launched last year passengers unable to show their railcards will be allowed to reclaim the cost of one penalty fare a year.

There are some restrictions on when the card can be used. The card is aimed at leisure travellers, with no discounts on season tickets and a ￡12 minimum fare on all journeys between 4.30am and 10am, excluding weekends and public holidays (more information on limitations can be found here).

Visit 26-30railcard.co.uk for more information on the railcard.