Simpler fares to be introduced in Greater Manchester

From Sunday, December 7, everyone who buys a ticket on the day they’re travelling between any two railway stations in Greater Manchester will be offered just two fare types: anytime or off-peak.

This change is part of a wider effort to make train travel more straightforward and transparent by eliminating complicated ticketing options.

Alex Hornby, commercial and customer director at Northern, said: "Customers tell us that buying railway tickets has become too complicated and the fare system needs to change.

"That’s why we're looking forward to introducing these new fares in Greater Manchester, which will make train travel much simpler, provide customers with more choice about which services they travel on and stop thousands from overpaying for their journeys."

The new fare structure will apply to all train operators, with single tickets priced at half the cost of a return journey.

On-the-day ticket purchases will be available at all 96 stations in Greater Manchester and online.

Advance purchase and season tickets will still be available, and railcard discounts will continue to apply.

The changes are expected to reduce the average fare in the region by 5.6 per cent.

More than half of journeys (52 per cent) will become cheaper, with savings of up to £1.50 on some routes.

However, 48 per cent of journeys will see a small increase, with 85 per cent of those rises limited to 20p or less.

The simplified fares are designed to support the integration of rail services into the Bee Network from December 2026.

This will enable contactless payment and further expansion of daily and weekly fare capping across public transport.

TransPennine Express routes between Stockport and Manchester, Manchester and Stalybridge, and Manchester and Manchester Airport will be included in the reform.

The announcement follows legislation in parliament yesterday (5 November) to establish Great British Railways (GBR).