Grantham youngsters asked by LNER about future of travel

A train company has been working with young people to potentially shape the future of rail travel.

LNER’s digital team alongside Startup Sherpas has been working with 150 13 to 18 year olds who live along the LNER route - including 10 from Grantham, four in Lincoln and three from Sleaford - to come up with creative ideas to choose train travel in the future instead of a car.

From the ideas generated, four clear themes emerged from the brainstorming including designated office carriages on trains, teenager-only carriages, a new tiered ticketing system for rail travel based on WiFi access and a loyalty scheme.

Frances Walker, head of digital experience strategy at LNER, said: “We’re so impressed by the quality and depth of the ideas that the squad developed.

“The project has given us some great insight into what customers of the future think is important when it comes to rail travel and we’re already looking at developing another SuperSquad to investigate the Rail Rewards concept further.

“It’s clear to see that the next generation has some fantastic ideas on how to ensure rail remains an exciting and relevant way to travel.”

The ideas were presented back to LNER for discussion with the company’s directors to see if they could become a reality.

They have now been presented in a report - Young People – The Champions of Rail - which can be viewed at https://startupsherpas.org/future-of-rail.

What do you think of the proposed ideas for the future of trains? Let us know in the comments