Train passengers get smart with tickets

TfW Rail Services is piloting its Smartcard - a more durable and easier alternative to paper tickets.

The TfW Rail Services Smartcard is available to weekly season ticket holders and is free to obtain via the TfW Rail Services website.

The Smartcard provides extra security as it can be cancelled or blocked at any time through the TfW Rail Services website or app and will not de-magnetise if accidently placed next to a smartphone.

With the Smartcard, passengers will be able to load their weekly season ticket onto the Smartcard rather than purchasing a new paper ticket.

TfW Rail Services has also announced that it will be donating £1,000 to the Nightingale House Hospice in Wrexham – a charity that provides specialist palliative care services to patients and their families across north Wales - when the trial surpasses the first 500 sign-ups.

Jess Druce, community fundraiser at Nightingale House, said “We really appreciate the support from TfW, it will cost £3,140,383 this year to keep Nightingale House running. Generous donations, such as this will help us to do what we do best here at the hospice - to care for local people when they need us most.”

To promote Smartcards, TfW Rail Services will be running on-station activity in Wrexham and Shrewsbury over the next few weeks where passengers will be offered a free Smartcard wallet holder.

The cards are free to obtain by simply registering at www.tfwrail.wales/smartcard. The Smartcard will then be posted to the passenger’s home address within five working days.

Cardholders will be able to view the status of their account and the tickets they have purchased at any time through the TfW website or app. Cardholders can also give feedback on the Smartcards at www.tfwrail.wales/smartcard-feedback

Colin Lea, Commercial and Customer Experience Director for TfW Rail Services, said: “The launch of our new Smartcard marks a significant and exciting step into the future of rail transport in Wales and the borders. We want to provide passengers with an easy, simple and hassle-free way of travelling throughout the country and borders and believe that Smartcards are the answer.

“This is a pilot and we may see some teething problems, so we are asking passengers for their feedback and ideas. That way we can improve the Smartcard scheme ready for a full rollout across our network later this year.”

The pilot of Smartcard is just one of the many improvements that TfW will be implementing. When the organisation took over the franchise in 2018, it published a timeline of changes “Coming Down the Track” detailing the transformational improvements that would be taking place by 2025.

Some improvements have already taken place which include reduced ticket prices, the deep clean of many stations and the refurbishment of several trains.