Trainline bosses want to meet Government officials to discuss their app’s future after last week’s rail industry overhaul.
Executives want to look at plans for a Great British Railways central ticketing app.
The plan for a Government-backed rival to the ticket giant wiped £500million, or more than a quarter, off Trainline’s share price.
Hitting the buffers?: Trainline executives want to look at plans for a Great British Railways central ticketing app
Analysts say Trainline may need to focus on season ticket sales, where there is a silver lining.
The reforms propose ‘flexi’ season tickets for those commuting two to three days a week. Mark Irvine-Fortescue, at stockbroker Stifel, said Trainline was well-placed to offer new digital options to commuters.
Owen Shirley, at Berenberg, said there was a risk that Trainline could lose customers with the proposed expansion of contactless payment, but he ‘expected this to be offset by the opening up of season ticket opportunity through flexi-tickets’.
Trainline, which was floated in 2019, already faces competition from the National Rail Enquiries website. Much of its revenue comes from offering so-called ‘white-label’ ticketing services to rail operators.