The idea was proposed by Green Party members of the London Assembly, Local Democracy reporter Noah Vickers reported.
Sadiq Khan has dismissed calls for a ‘rail miles’ loyalty scheme on the Transport for London (TfL) network.
Under the scheme, Londoners will be able to collect points every time they use the Underground and possibly other parts of the network, in exchange for cheaper travel on future trips.
The concept mimics the way airlines use air miles to incentivize customers to fly.
This was put forward as an idea for the national rail service to adopt in an October 2023 report by the Transport Improvement Campaign.
However, Sian Berry, a Green member of the London Assembly, told the capital’s mayor in a recent written question that “TfL services should be “Does Japan intend to create a similar loyalty system?” he asked. ”.
Mr Khan replied: “TfL has no intention of introducing a loyalty system.
“I remain committed to keeping fares as low as possible, which is why I have decided to freeze all TfL fares in 2024, making transport more accessible for millions of Londoners. It will be more affordable, encourage people to return to the public transport network and help enhance London’s culture.”, Retail and Hospitality Sector. ”
Ms Berry told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: ‘I have a history of bringing good ideas from campaigners to mayors and I’m surprised the mayor has refused to even consider any kind of loyalty program to reward TfL passengers. It’s unfortunate that I did that.”
“If we are serious about encouraging Londoners to get off planes and onto tubes and trains, shouldn’t we reward passengers for making greener choices?”
This idea is already being used in various ways by several railway companies. For example, his C2C, which operates services between London and Southend, has a program where smart card users earn points worth 1 pence for every £1 he spends, which they can use towards future travel. there is.
Some railway companies, such as South Western Railway and LNER, offer reward programs that offer discounts on theater trips, hotel stays, and other experiences.
The Campaign for Better Transport said in a report last year that despite the existence of such separate loyalty schemes, they are “difficult to implement across franchise agreements for different railway companies and therefore “An entire frequent traveler scheme has never been possible.” companies.
“Government and industry should work together to introduce a national ‘rail miles’ scheme modeled on successful air miles programmes.
“The sense of reward for using trains regularly will encourage passengers to choose rail travel, and the ability to use points to save on ticket prices will encourage travelers to choose train travel, which is generally more expensive than domestic flights. They will choose the intercity rail service that they think they want.”