'We're doing the right thing for our customers' say railway company bosses after new ticket announcement
Train operators Northern, East Midlands Railway (EMR) and TransPennine Express (TPE) have announced a formal agreement to automatically accept each other's tickets during times of service disruption, aimed at maintaining rail connectivity across the North of England.
Effective now, the arrangement will allow customers holding valid tickets for any of the three operators to travel on an alternative service within two hours of a cancellation. The agreement applies to both pre-planned cancellations and those arising on the day due to unplanned disruption.
Passengers travelling between Nottingham, Sheffield, Manchester and Liverpool will be able to use their tickets interchangeably on Northern, EMR or TPE services within a two-hour window of the affected train's scheduled departure. Travel must be on a reasonable route as shown in journey planning tools.
The new policy builds on existing measures introduced in December 2024, which previously allowed Northern ticket holders to use EMR and TPE services on Sundays in the event of cancellations.
The operators state that the enhanced agreement is designed to simplify procedures for passengers and frontline staff, while improving flexibility and confidence for customers during periods of disruption.
Tricia Williams, Managing Director of Northern, described the policy as “doing the right thing for our customers,” adding that it would help keep towns and cities connected when services do not run as planned.
Will Rogers, Managing Director of EMR, said the initiative represented “a great example of train operators working together to put customers first,” while TPE’s Commercial Director, Darren Higgins, said the policy would “help keep the North moving when it matters most.”
Under the government’s public ownership arrangements introduced in December 2024, passengers travelling with LNER, Northern or TransPennine Express have already been permitted to use services across those operators when journeys are disrupted.
Northern is currently the UK’s second largest train operator, operating around 2,650 services a day to more than 500 stations across the North of England.