Customer Information Pledges

Keeping you up to date when travelling by train

January 2024

Information Pledges

Our world has never had access to so much information - and we know you need information when things go wrong when choosing to travel with us.

Together, our industry has agreed on information pledges that:

are supported by all train companies

explain what our commitments are and what we’re doing to make things better

bring together good practice from across the rail and other industries to help you during disruption

allow for local and regional flexibility, whilst maintaining consistency

show that we truly care about you and we put our passengers first

In addition to the individual pledges, we commit to:

A1measuring and publishing how well we deliver against them
A2review them regularly to make sure that they continue to deliver what we intended
A3providing an area on every train company, the National Rail and Network Rail’s website dedicated to sharing how we manage service disruption

Always improving

B1We are always looking to do things better - and we want to keep improving your experience. You can find a summary of what we do and our plans for the future on your train company’s website, along with the websites of National Rail Enquiries (nationalrail.co.uk) and Network Rail (networkrail.co.uk).

We respect your privacy

We are constantly developing tools that make things easier for you - but with so much information available, you may have a better experience if you register some basic journey and contact details with us, so we can filter information that is relevant to you.

If you share your information, we will:

C1make it clear how we will use your information
C1not use the information for anything other than what you agree to
C1stop using your information if you tell us, at any time

Sharing some basic details helps us to make sure we only send you relevant and appropriate information. If you choose not to share your information, you will still be able to find all the information you need, it might just take a little bit longer for you to find what you need.

Male passenger in a station looking at his phone

Helping you plan
your journey...

A journey doesn’t start at a railway station - it can start when you arrange a meeting with a colleague, when you start a new job or when you fancy a day out with family and friends.

It’s good to plan...

Sometimes, Network Rail need to carry out improvement work (which keeps our network safe and makes it more reliable) or we might need to change the published timetable for other operational reasons. We work with Network Rail to agree and confirm any special timetables to cover this.

We normally plan things like this many months before they happen - if we need to change your train times, we will let you know as soon as we can.

To help you plan your journey, working with rail industry partners and retailers, we will:

D1publish the changes in our journey planners as soon as possible - we aim to do this no later than 12 weeks in advance for planned works
D2tell you in our journey planners if we have not yet confirmed the timetable and our normal timetable is still being shown

D3widely communicate details of upcoming changes to train times, so you know to check before you travel
D4provide a list of dates that are currently available for booking our Advance tickets on our website, so you do not need to worry that you will miss out on any cheaper tickets that might become available
D5let you know when planning your journey if, for any part of your journey, you need to travel on a mode of transport where you would normally expect it to be a train
D6run trains and road transport that is accessible for everyone. If this is not possible, we will tell you and offer to arrange an alternative if you get in touch with us
D7ensure replacement buses display their destination and depart from an identified departure point which is clearly shown
D8share information about the facilities that are available at the stations you will be using and highlight where there are any issues
D9offer you the option to be notified if your train times change after you buy your ticket online

It's all
about people...

The railway is all about people: we are people who work hard to help people just like you travel from A to B. We care about you. We care about your journey. We care when things go wrong.

Nobody likes it when things don’t go to plan - but from time to time, it’s inevitable that things can go wrong. We simply ask that you allow us the opportunity to put things right and treat our people with respect.

Our team members will:

E1be happy to help and be visible so you know where to find them
E2be the eyes and ears to help things run smoothly on the network - they will listen to any feedback you give and make sure it is recorded to help make things better in the future

E3know what they need to do to resolve or report a problem
E4know what to do to help you when you travel with us
E5have access to technology (such as a mobile device) to enable them to get helpful information and share it with you
E6be available at our staffed stations to give you information. At unstaffed stations, or if no staff are present, there will be a way of getting in touch with us and we will tell you about these on notices around the station

What you can expect when
travelling with us...

When you’re at a station, we will:

F1give you as much notice as possible about the platform your train will depart from. When we can’t confirm the platform or there is a change to the platform, we will tell you as soon as we know
F2keep you up-to-date on the status of your train
F3keep announcements to a minimum, so you can easily pick out important information
F4let you know if you need to travel in a particular part of the train for your journey - such as if you are travelling to a station which has a platform shorter than the length of the train, or if your train splits during the journey
F5provide details about onward travel options - including connecting trains and any local public transport services that are available

When you’re on a train, we will:

G1tell you as soon as we are aware that your train may be disrupted
G2let you know about the stations the train will stop at and let you know we are approaching the next station, to give you time to get ready to leave the train
G3let you know the destination of the train (on the front and/or side of the train) and the stations the train will call at (on internal displays, where fitted)
G4announce if the train stops unexpectedly between stations or will be late departing a station, so you know what is happening
G5make an announcement when there are changes to the stations that the train will be stopping at
G6Where we can, let you know of any disruption on other routes that your train connects with, which may affect your onward journey

Young passenger looking out a train window

When things
go wrong...

As soon as we are aware of a problem affecting your journey, we will:

H1update our digital information channels and stations/on train information screens with any cancellations, delays, or changes to the stations the train will call at
H2give you a reason for the alteration if the train is delayed by over ten minutes, if the train is cancelled or if we change the stations the train will be calling at
H3give our best estimate for how long the disruption will last
H4enable our team at our staffed stations to provide further announcements where more relevant local information is available
H5keep you up to date with information from the incident scene and our control rooms, so you know what is being done to put things right
H6work with rail industry partners to make sure that messages across all channels are consistent, so you do not have conflicting information
H7encourage you to 're-plan' your journey using our journey planners, by viewing the Live Departure Boards or by speaking to our team, so you can understand how the disruption will affect your journey
H8make sure that if we know a train is cancelled, it won’t be possible to buy a ticket for that journey on our website or a ticket-buying app. Our team members will make sure you know there are problems before they sell you a ticket
H9make sure you’re reminded of your right to claim compensation if your journey is disrupted

We’ll clearly explain things to you, by:

J1posting a message on our homepage and app, as well as the nationalrail.co.uk website if the change to your journey is part of a larger incident affecting the network, to let you know:

what the problem is
how it might impact your journey
our advice and options for you to consider

J2telling you how the incident is progressing:

whether we are investigating the problem
if work is ongoing to fix the problem
whether the problem is resolved
if the incident has been cleared with the train service back to normal

J3making sure our information is:

clear: easy to understand and jargon free
consistent: you will get the same information whatever channel you use
correct: we will give you factual information. If we don’t know something, we will tell you that we don’t know it
concise: we will keep things simple

J4sharing relevant travel options that help you make decisions about your journey. These may include:

checking if your journey by train is currently possible
travelling on another route (which might include local public transport)
using Emergency Replacement Transport
travelling at a later time or on another day

Rail passenger with a bicycle at a train station

We’ll give you a helping hand by:

K1taking care of you - if the last train of the day is cancelled, we won’t leave you stranded
K2helping you with directions if we suggest an alternative route and you are not familiar with it
K3making it clear that if we tell you to travel on a different train, route or operator, there will be no extra charge and you do not have to change your ticket even if it is for a specific train or operator

K4ensuring that if you had to travel from another station on your outward journey because your planned journey was disrupted and your ticket was being accepted on that route, you will be able to travel back to that station without paying an extra fare using your original ticket - even if there is no longer any disruption
K5making it clear how you can get in touch with us if you want to let us know how we are doing. We will listen to your feedback and use this to help improve in the future

Sharing
our tips...

We think it’s important that you know what tools are available to help keep you informed.

There are some things we would encourage you to do:

L1always check before you travel, to make sure that nothing has changed, through your train company’s website or app, nationalrail.co.uk or the National Rail Enquiries app
L2remember that “everyone’s journey is different”, and that using a journey planner is the best way to find the best trains to match your journey - especially if your journey is disrupted
L3ask for help; we are here whether that is before you travel, on the day if you need it or after you have travelled
L4sign up for our notifi cation services, and we will make sure to explain the benefits

L5check out the ‘Ticket Availability’ pages so you know when Advance tickets will go on sale
L6be aware that some stations may not be accessible for everyone - plan ahead to make your journey as smooth as possible
L7know where to go to get information about a major incident on our website or app
L8remember it can take us time to get alternatives arranged during disruption - please be patient and kind to our team whilst we work hard to put things in place
L9be aware that you might be able to claim compensation if you are delayed

Always
improving...

We’re always looking to do things better - and we want to keep improving your experience.

Below are our aspirations for the future - some train companies may already deliversome of these, others may not be able to just yet. On certain parts of the rail network, some may not be appropriate - for example, not all train companies offer Advance tickets and therefore there is no benefit in providing a ticket availability alert service.

We hope that many of these, over time, will become part of our customer information pledges.

In the future, we hope to:

M1enable you to register for ticket availability alerts, so you know when tickets are available to book for your chosen travel date
M2give you the ability to create travel alerts that will notify you before you travel if there are any changes to your journey
M4let you know the departure point of any replacement bus when you’re planning the journey, so you know where to go
M5show you where rail replacement buses are in real-time, to help reassure you
M6make our team more visible during disruption, for example by making their uniform easier to spot
M7keep our teams up to date with reliable technology
M8provide coaching to our teams, so they know how to effectively share information with you and use technology more confi dently
M9give you advance notice if other modes of transport are disrupted, so you can plan ahead
M10in our journey planner and Live Departure Boards, identify trains that may potentially be affected by disruption - especially when we do not know exactly what the impact will be, so you can check back later or find an alternative train
M11publish a plan, so that you know what to expect when things go wrong. This will mean we deliver a consistent approach to getting you moving again if things go wrong

M12use our onboard information systems to let you know about a change to the service as soon as possible
M13let you know about problems before you buy your ticket from our ticket machines
M14let you know how many carriages your train will have, how busy your train is expected to be and if we expect trains or stations to be busier than normal
M15use technology so that we can offer advice that is personal to you and the time you are travelling
M16make improvements to ensure information is accessible and inclusive to everyone, including alternative languages and formats
M17improve the information we share about the layout of your train, so you know what facilities are available onboard

This document has been produced through colloboration between train operators, Network Rail and Rail Delivery Group as part of the "Smarter Information, Smarter Journeys" programme.

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All the pledges

ABCIn addition to the individual pledges we will

In addition to the individual pledges, we commit to:	A1	...measuring and publishing how well we deliver against these pledges
	A2	...review them regularly to make sure that they continue to deliver what we intended them to
	A3	...providing an area on every train company, the National Rail and Network Rail’s website dedicated to sharing how we manage service disruption
Always improving...	B1	We are always looking to do things better - and we want to keep improving your experience. You can find a summary of what we do and our plans for the future on your train company’s website, along with the websites of National Rail Enquiries (nationalrail.co.uk) and Network Rail (networkrail.co.uk)
If you share your information, we pledge:	C1	...to make it clear how we will use your information ...not use the information for anything other than what you agree to ...to stop using your information if you tell us, at any time

DHelping you plan your journey

To help you plan your journey, working with rail industry partners and retailers, we will:	D1	...publish the changes in our journey planners as soon as possible - we aim to do this no later than 12 weeks in advance for planned works
	D2	...tell you in our journey planners if we have not yet confirmed the timetable and our normal timetable is still being shown
	D3	...widely communicate details of upcoming changes to train times, so you know to check before you travel
	D4	...provide a list of dates that are currently available for booking our Advance tickets on our website, so you do not need to worry that you will miss out on any cheaper tickets that might become available
	D5	...let you know when planning your journey if, for any part of your journey, you need to travel on a mode of transport where you would normally expect it to be a train
	D6	...run trains and road transport that is accessible for everyone. If this is not possible, we will tell you and offer to arrange an alternative if you get in touch with us
	D7	...ensure replacement buses display their destination and depart from an identified departure point which is clearly shown
	D8	...share information about the facilities that are available at the stations you will be using and highlight where there are any issues
	D9	Offer you the option to be notified if your train times change after you buy your ticket online

EIt's all about people

We pledge that our team members will:	E1	...be happy to help and be visible so you know where to find them
	E2	...be the eyes and ears to help things run smoothly on the network - they will listen to any feedback you give and make sure it is recorded to help make things better in the future
	E3	...know what they need to do to resolve or report a problem
	E4	...know what to do to help you when you travel with us
	E5	...have access to technology (such as a mobile device) to enable them to get helpful information and share it with you
	E6	...be available at our staffed stations to give you information. At unstaffed stations, or if no staff are present, there will be a way of getting in touch with us and we will tell you about these on notices around the station

FWhat you can expect when travelling with us

When you’re at a station, we will:	F1	...give you as much notice as possible about the platform your train will depart from. When we can’t confirm the platform or there is a change to the platform, we will tell you as soon as we know
	F2	...keep you up-to-date on the status of your train
	F3	...keep announcements to a minimum, so you can easily pick out important information
	F4	...let you know if you need to travel in a particular part of the train for your journey - such as if you are travelling to a station which has a platform shorter than the length of the train or if your train splits during the journey
	F5	…provide details about onward travel options - including connecting trains and any local public transport services that are available

GWhen you're on a train, we will

When you’re on a train, we will:	G1	...tell you as soon as we are aware that your train may be disrupted
	G2	...let you know about the stations the train will stop at and let you know we are approaching the next station, to give you time to get ready to leave the train
	G3	...let you know the destination of the train (on the front and/or side of the train) and the stations the train will call at (on internal displays, where fitted)
	G4	…announce if the train stops unexpectedly between stations or will be late departing a station, so you know what is happening
	G5	make an announcement when there are changes to the stations that the train will be stopping at
	G6	...where we can let you know of any disruption on other routes that your train connects with, which may affect your onward journey

HWhen things go wrong

As soon as we are aware of a problem affecting your journey, we will:	H1	...update our digital information channels and stations/on train information screens with any cancellations, delays, or changes to the stations the train will call at
	H2	...give you a reason for the alteration if the train is delayed by over ten minutes, if the train is cancelled or if we change the stations the train will be calling at
	H3	...give our best estimate for how long the disruption will last
	H4	...enable our team at our staffed stations to provide further announcements where more relevant local information is available
	H5	...keep you up to date with information from the incident scene and our control rooms, so you know what is being done to put things right
	H6	...work with rail industry partners to make sure that messages across all channels are consistent, so you do not have conflicting information
	H7	...encourage you to ‘re-plan’ your journey using our journey planners, by viewing the Live Departure Boards or by speaking to our team, so you can understand how the disruption will affect your journey
	H8	...make sure that if we know a train is cancelled, it won’t be possible to buy a ticket for that journey on our website or a ticket-buying app. Our team members will make sure you know there are problems before they sell you a ticket
	H9	...make sure you’re reminded of your right to claim compensation if your journey is disrupted

JWe'll clearly explain things to you, by

We’ll clearly explain things to you, by...	J1	...posting a message on our homepage and app, as well as the nationalrail.co.uk website if the change to your journey is part of a larger incident affecting the network, to let you know: what the problem is how it might impact your journey our advice and options for you to consider
	J2	...telling you how the incident is progressing: whether we are investigating the problem if work is ongoing to fix the problem whether the problem is resolved, or if the incident has been cleared with the train service back to normal
	J3	...making sure our information is: Clear: easy to understand and jargon-free Consistent: you will get the same information whatever channel you use Correct: we will give you factual information. If we don’t know something, we will tell you that we don’t know it. Concise: we will keep things simple
	J4	…sharing relevant travel options that help you make decisions about your journey. These may include A. Checking if your journey by train is currently possible B. Travelling on another route (which might include local public transport) C. Using Emergency Replacement Transport, where provided D. Travelling at a later date or another day

KWe'll give you a helping hand by

We’ll give you a helping hand, by...	K1	...taking care of you - if the last train of the day is cancelled, we won’t leave you stranded
	K2	...helping you with directions if we suggest an alternative route and you are not familiar with it
	K3	...making it clear that if we tell you to travel on a different train, route or operator, there will be no extra charge and you do not have to change your ticket even if it is for a specific train or operator
	K4	...ensuring that if you had to travel from another station on your outward journey because your planned journey was disrupted and your ticket was being accepted on that route, you will be able to travel back to that station without paying an extra fare using your original ticket - even if there is no longer any disruption
	K5	...making it clear how you can get in touch with us if you want to let us know how we are doing. We will listen to your feedback and use this to help improve in the future

LSharing our tips

There’s some things we’d encourage you to do:	L1	...always check before you travel, to make sure that nothing has changed, through your train company’s website or app, nationalrail.co.uk or the National Rail Enquiries app
	L2	...remember that “everyone’s journey is different”, and that using a journey planner is the best way to find the best trains to match your journey - especially if your journey is disrupted
	L3	...ask for help; we are here whether that is before you travel, on the day if you need it or after you have travelled
	L4	...sign up for our notification services, and we will make sure to explain the benefits
	L5	...check out the ‘Ticket Availability’ pages so you know when Advance tickets will go on sale
	L6	...be aware that some stations may not be accessible for everyone - plan ahead to make your journey as smooth as possible
	L7	...know where to go to get information about a major incident on our website or app
	L8	...remember it can take us time to get alternatives arranged during disruption - please be patient and kind to our team whilst we work hard to put things in place
	L9	...be aware that you might be able to claim compensation if you are delayed

MIn the future , we hope to

In the future, we hope to:	M1	...enable you to register for ticket availability alerts, so you know when tickets are available to book for your chosen travel date
	M2	...give you the ability to create travel alerts that will notify you before you travel if there are any changes to your journey
	M4	...let you know the departure point of any replacement bus when you’re planning the journey, so you know where to go
	M5	...show you where rail replacement buses are in real-time, to help reassure you
	M6	...make our team more visible during disruption, for example by making their uniform easier to spot
	M7	...keep our teams up to date with reliable technology
	M8	...provide coaching to our teams, so they know how to effectively share information with you and use technology more confidently
	M9	...give you advance notice if other modes of transport are disrupted, so you can plan ahead
	M10	...in our journey planner and Live Departure Boards, identify trains that may potentially be affected by disruption - especially when we do not know exactly what the impact will be, so you can check back later or find an alternative train
	M11	...publish a plan, so that you know what to expect when things go wrong. This will mean we deliver a consistent approach to getting you moving again if things go wrong
	M12	...use our onboard information systems to let you know about a change to the service as soon as possible
	M13	...let you know about problems before you buy your ticket from our ticket machines
	M14	...let you know how many carriages your train will have, how busy your train is expected to be and if we expect trains or stations to be busier than normal
	M15	...use technology so that we can offer advice that is personal to you and the time you are travelling
	M16	...make improvements to ensure information is accessible and inclusive to everyone, including alternative languages and formats
	M17	...improve the information we share about the layout of your train, so you know what facilities are available on board

Customer Information Pledges

Information Pledges

Helping you plan
your journey...

It's all
about people...

What you can expect when
travelling with us...

When things
go wrong...

Sharing
our tips...

Always
improving...

All the pledges

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Rail Delivery Group

Rail Delivery Group Ltd
First Floor North,
1 Puddle Dock,
London,
EC4V 3DS

Customer Information Pledges

Information Pledges

Helping you plan your journey...

It's all about people...

What you can expect when travelling with us...

When things go wrong...

Sharing our tips...

Always improving...

All the pledges

Helping you plan
your journey...

It's all
about people...

What you can expect when
travelling with us...

When things
go wrong...

Sharing
our tips...

Always
improving...