This week Mayor Steve Rotheram announced the launch of new online smart ticketing options for public transport passengers across the Liverpool City Region.
At Transport for the North, we are always excited by anything that makes public transport easier and more convenient to use, but we are especially proud to play our part in making this a reality in the Liverpool City Region.
We have been working in partnership with Merseytravel and Merseyrail to improve smart ticketing on rail in the region as part of our Integrated and Smart Travel programme.
Step one of this was launched in 2019 when we worked together to enable the sale of Merseyrail’s Railpass tickets (weekly, monthly and annual seasons) on to the existing local Walrus smartcards – now known as the MetroCard. This complimented the introduction of smartcards for Northern and TransPennine passengers, ensuring rail season ticket customers could choose smart no matter where they were travelling to.
Thanks to a coordinated approach between all our train operators, which Transport for the North led, passenger take-up of smart seasons was fantastic right across the North. By March 2020, prior to the start of the pandemic, a majority of season ticket customers were buying on to smartcard instead of paper – with the Liverpool City Region leading the way.
Since then, the major part of Transport for the North’s role has been overseeing the installation of over 180 platform validators at 66 Merseyrail stations. This second stage may not sound ground-breaking, but platform validators are essential in enabling a fuller smart ticketing offer, including the ability to buy online, as well as ‘tap and go’ travel in the future.
Platform validators support buying smart tickets online as they provide a way for passengers to validate and redeem their purchase when they turn up at a station to travel.
This is exactly what is happening in the Liverpool City Region – passengers can now purchase their Merseyrail Only Railpass via Merseytravel’s new Metro Smart Portal and collect these by tapping their smartcard on a platform validator.
These online options offer new levels of flexibility and convenience. Importantly, with many different bus and rail tickets available in one place, it also offer greater consistency of experience for passengers no matter what mode of public transport they are travelling on or ticket that they require.
The installation of validators across the region also paves the way for future smart ticketing innovations – such as smart flexi tickets or a London-style ‘tap and go’ system using contactless bank cards or mobile phones for payments.
It’s apparent that this ticketing infrastructure, often taken for granted in the capital, is critical to delivering flexibility and fair price commitments in the North that London’s passengers have enjoyed for many years. Enabling smart on rail is a step towards making that a reality.
At Transport for North we are proud of the collaborative way we have worked with Merseytravel and Merseyrail to play our part in this project, proving that when the North works together, we can get things done and transform travel for the better.
We are excited that more local passengers will start to benefit from these new smart ticketing options as they return to public transport once lockdown restrictions are eased. Remember, current national travel advice is that you should only make essential journeys and stay local. Look out for more updates from Merseyrail and Merseytravel soon.
You can also find more about transport developments in the Liverpool City Region via our Local Authority webpages.
Jeremy Acklam, Integrated and Smart Travel Director at Transport for the North, said: “We’re thrilled to have supported Mayor Rotheram and Merseyrail launch their online ticketing offer, which will give passengers new levels of convenience, flexibility and choice about how and when they pay for their tickets.
“Funding over 180 platform validators at stations across the Merseyrail network has enabled the sale of more smart tickets online and, importantly, will help expand the ability to ‘tap and go’ in the future.
“Passengers in Liverpool City Region deserve that London-style experience and convenience that travellers in the capital take for granted, and it’s great to strides being taken toward that goal.”
Suzanne Grant, Commercial Director at Merseyrail, said: “The installation of platform validators across our network and making the Merseyrail Only Railpass available on the MetroSmart Portal is a major step forward. This will modernise and simplify the process of purchasing a train ticket – something we know that our passengers want.
“This launch is an exciting step as we continue to work with our partners to ensure that travelling on the Merseyrail network is as easy and straightforward as possible for the people of the Liverpool City Region.
“More information on how to use the platform validators is available on our website or by asking our helpful station staff.”
Metro Mayor Steve Rotheram said: “Last year when we launched the MetroCard, I said that this was a key step on our journey to delivering a London-style public transport network for our city region that is quick, affordable and easy to use.
“The last twelve months might have seen fewer people using public transport, but the MetroCard will be a feature on our local network for years to come.
“These new features are only the beginning. We’ll be looking to add more kinds of ticket and greater functionality to the cards in future.”