Trainline bosses want to meet Government officials to discuss app’s future after rail industry overhaul
Trainline bosses want to meet Government officials to discuss their app’s future after last week’s rail industry overhaul.
Executives want to look at plans for a Great British Railways central ticketing app.
The plan for a Government-backed rival to the ticket giant wiped £500million, or more than a quarter, off Trainline’s share price.
Hitting the buffers?: Trainline executives want to look at plans for a Great British Railways central ticketing app
Analysts say Trainline may need to focus on season ticket sales, where there is a silver lining.
The reforms propose ‘flexi’ season tickets for those commuting two to three days a week. Mark Irvine-Fortescue, at stockbroker Stifel, said Trainline was well-placed to offer new digital options to commuters.
Owen Shirley, at Berenberg, said there was a risk that Trainline could lose customers with the proposed expansion of contactless payment, but he ‘expected this to be offset by the opening up of season ticket opportunity through flexi-tickets’.
Trainline, which was floated in 2019, already faces competition from the National Rail Enquiries website. Much of its revenue comes from offering so-called ‘white-label’ ticketing services to rail operators.