Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of recent change in the number of (1) rail commuters, compared to (2) leisure travel passengers; and what steps they taking to increase the number of rail commuters.

Rail was heavily impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. However, in November 2021, rail journey numbers had recovered to approximately 70% levels of an equivalent day in the previous year.

The Department publish National Statistics on rail journeys by purpose (including commuting, business, and leisure) in the National Travel Survey. The latest data is for calendar year 2020 and show a fall in the proportion of all journeys which are for commuting (summarised in the table below). The data shows that commuting traffic has been slower to recover than leisure demand.

Transport Focus publishes results of a survey which includes breakdowns of rail journeys by purpose throughout 2021. This survey estimates that throughout November 2021, the proportion of rail journeys that are for commuting are approximately one-third. It should be noted that the sample-size is relatively small at circa 480 per week.

The government is working with the rail industry to develop a number of recovery initiatives, focused on restoring passenger confidence in travelling by rail including for commuting journeys. Including introducing flexible season tickets across England this year, tickets launched on the 21 June and became available for use on the 28 June. This is a national product, priced to provide better value and convenience for commuters travelling two to three days a week.