Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans he has to simplify fares structures set by the Northern franchisee; and what funding his Department has allocated to developing and rolling out the Smart in the North programme.

We are keen to see a Northern transport network that makes it simple and easy to travel around and between city regions. Through the Northern franchise competition we have merged the previously separate fares areas and are asking bidders to propose plans to simplify fares structures. We are also developing, in conjunction with Transport for the North, a business case for funding a smart ticketing scheme on the northern rail network that could integrate with city region smart ticketing products.