{
  "dataset": "prices.rail-fares",
  "generated": "2026-09-20T13:58:12.681Z",
  "licence": {
    "compilation": "CC BY 4.0",
    "compilation_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
    "attribution": "Tariff Tracker, tarifftracker.io, published by PEF Consulting Partners Limited",
    "underlying": "The figures themselves belong to the bodies named in each dataset's sources. Most are Crown copyright under the Open Government Licence v3. Supplier tariff rates belong to the suppliers who publish them. Check the source terms before you rely on any of it commercially.",
    "corrections": "If a figure here is wrong, say so and we will correct it and record that we did."
  },
  "docs": "https://tarifftracker.io/api/",
  "fields": "https://tarifftracker.io/api/v1/dictionary",
  "as_of": "2026-03-02",
  "sources": [
    {
      "name": "DfT, rail fare freeze starts",
      "url": "https://www.gov.uk/government/news/passengers-save-millions-as-rail-fare-freeze-starts"
    },
    {
      "name": "DfT, Railways Bill fares factsheet",
      "url": "https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/railways-bill/railways-bill-fares"
    },
    {
      "name": "DfT, rail fares index 2026",
      "url": "https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/rail-fares-index-2026"
    },
    {
      "name": "National Rail, flexi season tickets",
      "url": "https://www.nationalrail.co.uk/tickets-railcards-and-offers/ticket-types/flexi-season-tickets/"
    },
    {
      "name": "National Rail, compensation and refunds",
      "url": "https://www.nationalrail.co.uk/help-and-assistance/compensation-and-refunds/"
    },
    {
      "name": "Railcard",
      "url": "https://www.railcard.co.uk/"
    },
    {
      "name": "GLA, March 2026 TfL fare changes",
      "url": "https://www.london.gov.uk/md3464-march-2026-transport-london-fare-changes"
    },
    {
      "name": "Scottish Government, ScotRail fares frozen",
      "url": "https://www.gov.scot/news/scotrail-fares-frozen-for-12-months/"
    },
    {
      "name": "Welsh Government, TfW fare freeze",
      "url": "https://media.service.gov.wales/news/freeze-on-tfw-rail-fares-for-the-next-year"
    }
  ],
  "caveats": [
    "No decision has been published on what happens to regulated fares after the freeze ends in March 2027. We will not print a 2027 figure, and neither should anyone else.",
    "Delay Repay thresholds are not standardised. The table here is the common structure verified against one operator. We could not obtain the statutory minimum in the National Rail Conditions of Travel.",
    "Minimum fare rules are confirmed only for the 16-25, Senior and Network railcards. The others may have restrictions we could not verify.",
    "The Railways Bill had not received Royal Assent at the time of writing, so no Great British Railways launch date is shown."
  ],
  "data": {
    "vertical": "rail-fares",
    "name": "Rail fares",
    "tagline": "Frozen for the first time in thirty years, in three nations at once, and all of it expires around March 2027.",
    "headline": {
      "value": "0%",
      "unit": "",
      "label": "Regulated rail fare rise in England, 2026",
      "sub": "Frozen from 2 March 2026, the first freeze in 30 years. Would have been 5.8% under the usual formula.",
      "direction": "down",
      "change": "Frozen, saving £600m a year",
      "band": "calm",
      "source": "DfT",
      "as_of": "2026-03-02",
      "short": "0% rise"
    },
    "benchmark": null,
    "stats": [
      {
        "k": "Share of fares regulated",
        "v": "45%",
        "n": "The rest are operator set"
      },
      {
        "k": "Most railcards",
        "v": "£35",
        "n": "A third off, pays back fast"
      },
      {
        "k": "Disabled Persons Railcard",
        "v": "£20",
        "n": "Cheapest, and valid any time"
      },
      {
        "k": "London bus single",
        "v": "£1.75",
        "n": "Until 1 November 2026"
      }
    ],
    "tables": [
      {
        "title": "Railcards, and the catch on each",
        "note": "A third off means most railcards pay for themselves in two or three journeys. The minimum fare rules are where people get caught out.",
        "cols": [
          "Railcard",
          "1 year",
          "3 years",
          "Discount",
          "The catch"
        ],
        "rows": [
          [
            "16-25",
            "£35",
            "£80",
            "A third off",
            "£12 minimum fare on weekday journeys starting between 04:30 and 09:59. No minimum in July and August or on public holidays."
          ],
          [
            "26-30",
            "£35",
            "Not offered",
            "A third off",
            "Digital only."
          ],
          [
            "16-17 Saver",
            "£35",
            "Not offered",
            "Half off",
            "England and Wales only, but it covers season tickets too."
          ],
          [
            "Two Together",
            "£35",
            "Not offered",
            "A third off",
            "Both named people must travel together. After 09:30 on weekdays."
          ],
          [
            "Family and Friends",
            "£35",
            "£80",
            "A third off adults, 60% off children",
            "Up to 4 adults and 4 children."
          ],
          [
            "Senior, 60 and over",
            "£35",
            "£80",
            "A third off",
            "Not valid in the morning peak within the Network Railcard area."
          ],
          [
            "Network",
            "£35",
            "Not offered",
            "A third off",
            "London and the South East only. £13 minimum weekday fare."
          ],
          [
            "Veterans",
            "£35",
            "£80",
            "A third off",
            "Covers the holder plus one adult and up to four children."
          ],
          [
            "Disabled Persons",
            "£20",
            "£54",
            "A third off",
            "Valid any time, any day, and covers an adult companion. The most generous card and the cheapest."
          ]
        ]
      },
      {
        "title": "Delay Repay, roughly",
        "note": "This is NOT standardised. National Rail is explicit that each operator sets its own threshold and the Conditions of Travel set only a minimum. The table below is the common Delay Repay 15 structure, verified against Southern. Check your own operator.",
        "cols": [
          "Delay",
          "Single or return",
          "Season ticket"
        ],
        "rows": [
          [
            "15 to 29 minutes",
            "At least 25% of the fare",
            "25% of the single journey value"
          ],
          [
            "30 to 59 minutes",
            "At least 50% of the fare",
            "50% of the single journey value"
          ],
          [
            "60 to 119 minutes",
            "100% of a single, or at least 50% of a return",
            "100% of the single journey value"
          ],
          [
            "120 minutes or more",
            "100% of the total fare",
            "100% of the return journey cost"
          ]
        ]
      },
      {
        "title": "Transport for London, from 1 March 2026",
        "note": "Average rise of 3.2%. Caps and Travelcards are frozen until March 2027 to mirror national policy, but the bus fare freeze ends sooner.",
        "cols": [
          "Fare",
          "Price",
          "Note"
        ],
        "rows": [
          [
            "Bus or tram single",
            "£1.75",
            "Frozen since March 2023. Rises to £1.85 on 2 November 2026."
          ],
          [
            "Bus and tram daily cap",
            "£5.25",
            "Rises to £5.55 on 2 November 2026."
          ],
          [
            "Tube peak single, one zone including zone 1",
            "£3.10",
            "Up from £2.90"
          ],
          [
            "Tube off peak single, one zone including zone 1",
            "£3.00",
            "Up from £2.80"
          ],
          [
            "Daily pay as you go cap, zones 1 to 2",
            "£8.90",
            "Frozen"
          ],
          [
            "7 day Travelcard, zones 1 to 2",
            "£44.70",
            "Frozen"
          ]
        ]
      }
    ],
    "facts": [
      "The freeze covers standard class season tickets, anytime and off peak fares in England. It does not cover first class, premium standard or advance fares.",
      "Regulated fares are about 45% of all fares, concentrated on commuter routes where people have no practical alternative.",
      "Scotland abolished peak fares on ScotRail permanently on 1 September 2025, then froze all fares for 12 months in February 2026.",
      "Wales froze every Transport for Wales fare from 1 March 2026, regulated and unregulated alike.",
      "The Office of Rail and Road measured all Great Britain fares as unchanged over the year to March 2026 while RPI rose 4.1%.",
      "A flexi season gives you any 8 days of travel in 28, at a minimum 20% discount on a monthly season, and you must activate each day before boarding.",
      "From 1 April 2026 you can only claim a refund on an unused ticket bought before you travelled, an anti fraud measure the DfT expects to save about £40m a year.",
      "Contactless pay as you go now reaches about 103 stations, with 20 Greater Anglia stations including Stansted added in summer 2026."
    ],
    "support": [
      {
        "name": "Disabled Persons Railcard",
        "what": "A third off for you and an adult companion, valid any time. £20 a year or £54 for three.",
        "who": "You receive certain disability benefits, are registered visually impaired or deaf, have epilepsy, or buy or lease a vehicle through a disability scheme."
      },
      {
        "name": "16-17 Saver",
        "what": "Half price travel including season tickets",
        "who": "16 and 17 year olds in England and Wales. Half off is far better than the third off most cards give."
      },
      {
        "name": "Jobcentre Plus Travel Discount Card",
        "what": "Half off selected fares, and half off flexi seasons",
        "who": "Issued through Jobcentre Plus if you are unemployed and claiming certain benefits. Ask, because it is not offered automatically."
      }
    ],
    "page": "https://tarifftracker.io/rail-fares/"
  }
}