Northern offers students 75 per cent off train tickets to overturn ‘stressful’ school run

Northern hopes to entice more students and take over ‘stressful’ school runs with their new scheme.

The operator is offering 75 per cent off train tickets for students’ commute to school from September in the hopes more will move from road to rail.

The discount is available on annual tickets bought as part of their Under 16 Education Season Ticket scheme, which went on-sale yesterday (August 1).

Tickets cover unlimited travel between any two stations on the Northern network seven days a week – which can also be used at weekends and during the school holidays too.

As the second largest train operator in the UK, with 2,500 services a day to more than 500 stations across the North of England, the programme has run in partnership with 166 secondary schools and university technical colleges (UTCs).

Mark Powles, commercial and customer director at Northern, said: “The school run can be one of the most stressful times of the day for parents – and we want to make it a thing of the past.

“With 75%-off the cost of their journey for anyone that signs-up for the full school year, our Under 16 Education Season Tickets offer one of the most generous discounts of any ticket scheme in the country.”

Northern rail welcomed around 15,000 student commuters on-board its services every week in the 2022-23 academic year but only 3,300 (3,294) of them travelled using one of the heavily discounted Under 16 Education Season Tickets, paying an average cost of £200.21 for the year.

Powles added: “By encouraging students to use the train from an early age, we also hope to kickstart a lifelong habit of commuting by rail.”

Parents and guardians of children attending those schools and UTCs are encouraged to email education@northernrailway.co.uk so