The number of rail journeys taken in Great Britain decreased by 51.0 million (11.4%) in 2019-20 Q4 compared with 2018-19 Q4 as the public were asked by government to stay at home to protect the NHS and save lives, according to Q4 Passenger Rail Usage statistics released by the Office of Rail and Road on Thursday.
New data (below) however shows passenger behaviour towards rail travel is shifting in England and Wales, as lockdown restrictions continue to be eased and people return to work.
Data from Passenger Connect’s analytics platform, founded by UK technology start-up Zipabout, shows there has since been a 12% uplift in passenger intent to travel across major rail stations in England and Wales over the last 20 days. The data is based on relative inbound and outbound station demand collated over the last 20 days (15 May – 03 June) and compared with the previous 20 days (25 April – 14 May).
The data shows significant regional variations, however. In Scotland, major stations saw a fall (-6%) in intent to travel over the last 20 days.
Meanwhile, the number of people planning to travel to and from England and Wales’ capitals (London Waterloo and Cardiff Central stations) increased by nearly 20% over the last 20 days. Manchester Piccadilly saw just a 3% uplift.
- Cardiff Central: 18%
- London Waterloo: 17%
- Birmingham New Street: 14%
- Bristol Temple Meads: 7%
- Manchester Piccadilly: 3%
- Glasgow Central: -8%
- Edinburgh Rail Station: -4%
Below you will find further details on Zipabout’s intent to travel data and the services we are providing throughout this crisis.
About Zipabout’s intent to travel data
The data comes from Zipabout’s patent pending passenger communication and analytics platform, which is used by transport operators and rail companies such as National Rail Enquiries, to provide millions of UK passengers with live journey assistance and personalised travel updates. The stats reveals the scale of journey planning and information requests from millions of passengers looking to travel to and from some of the UK’s major rail stations.
How Passenger Connect is improve passenger safety
Zipabout’s Passenger Connect platform is currently being used by National Rail Enquiries to provide real-time personal messaging to passengers relating to their individual journeys. The service advises passengers if they will be affected by disruption and overcrowding and provides alternative travel options: helping people maintain social distancing and continue to make essential journeys.
Information is delivered to passengers via their channel of choice, including Messenger, with future rollout on WhatsApp and SMS. Passengers can immediately connect to a series of useful tools by simply searching for National Rail Enquiries on Messenger.
Photo credit: Zipabout
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