Greater Manchester to Introduce Simplified Fare Scheme

New rail fares are set to be introduced in Greater Manchester this December as part of the first wave of the UK Government’s fare transformation.

From Sunday 7 December; passengers travelling throughout the city-region on the day will be offered either an Anytime or an Off-peak ticket, reducing the number of available ticket types from over a dozen to just two.

The fares are applicable across rail services run by all operators, and all single journeys will now be half the price of return trips.

Tickets will be available from the 96 stations in Greater Manchester, as well as online. Other types of tickets will still be available for those who wish to book in advance.

The initiative aims to simplify rail fares for passengers across the country, making both ticketing and prices more transparent – with Greater Manchester set to be one of the first areas in the country to benefit from the reform.

Alex Hornby, Northern’s commercial and customer director, 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.

Of course, we will have our colleagues on hand to help customers get to grips with the new tickets and we will be welcoming and listening to all feedback to ensure they work for everyone.

Overall, the average fare in Greater Manchester is set to fall by 5.6% as a result of the new fare scheme, with customers saving up to 1.50 GBP on some trips as a number of single fares will see their prices dropped to ensure they are half the price of a return.

Whilst 52% of journeys will see price reductions on fares; the remaining 48% will see a slight price increase.

Andy Burnham, Mayor of Greater Manchester, said:

For too long, confusion around the complicated web of tickets has been a barrier to people choosing the train.

In December, Greater Manchester will be the one of the first city region’s outside London to get a simple set of on-the-day fares – vital progress in making rail travel easier, fairer and more accessible for everyone.

We’ve seen that making public transport more affordable and simpler boosts passenger numbers, with more people than ever boarding our yellow buses and integrated tap and go payments with our tram network.

These simpler fares are a stepping stone to bringing rail into the Bee Network in December 2026, joining up trains with buses, trams and active travel for an integrated public transport system like those enjoyed by other global cities.