Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the letter of 11 October 2019 from the Minister of State for Transport to the Rail industry on smart ticketing, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of (a) the levers available to train operators to bring forward smart ticketing and (b) the role of Government in delivering that agenda.

We want train companies to deliver a modern, convenient, accessible and integrated smart ticketing system for their passengers. In recent years, the Government has worked jointly with the rail industry, including investing a further £80m in smart ticketing, to ensure that passengers have the choice of travelling without a paper ticket across almost all of the rail network.

We are now encouraging operators to build on the recent promotion campaign, encourage smart ticketing at the point of ticket purchase, and ensure that they deliver an excellent user experience.