STATISTICS published by the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) show that for the three months ending September 30, 2022 passenger numbers were 80.3% of the total for the same period in 2019, which reflected the demand before the pandemic struck.
A loss of one-in-five passengers is bad enough, but it would not be an exaggeration to say that farebox revenue has fallen off a cliff.
The ORR’s data suggests it was at 70.3% of the 2019 figure with takings of £2.2 billion compared with £3.1bn for the same period three years ago. If that trend continues, it is likely that the income shortfall will be even worse given the widespread disruption during the three months up to December 31. Taken on an annual basis, the industry is facing an income shortfall of at least £3.5bn.
As this issue of RE went to press, there was continued disruption from industrial action (see Headline News p8) with both RMT and ASLEF members taking action at operators either directly run by the Department for Transport (DfT) or which hold contracts giving the government control over pay negotiations.
Although not all staff employed by the passenger and freight operators are in dispute, services are heavily disrupted by RMT strike
