The UK Department for Transport has released National Statistics for Public Transport for 2007/2008, which shows an increase in the amount of train journeys and passenger numbers as well as increased passenger satisfaction levels.
Total passenger kilometres in 2007–08 were 49 billion, an increase of 6.0% on 2006–07.
The total amount of passenger journeys made in 2007–08 was 1.2 billion, a increase of 7.1% on the previous year.
Total passenger revenue increased from around £5bn to £5.6bn, this partly due to a raise in the fare price index, which showed that the average price of all rail tickets in real terms increased by 2.7% since 2007.
Nationally the percentage of passengers satisfied with their journey overall was up by 2% compared to 825 over spring 2007. At national level, the proportion of passengers satisfied with punctuality/reliability was 79%, a 2% increase over spring 2007.
This may have something to do with an increase in trains running on time. In 2007–8, 89.9% of trains ran on time, representing an 1.8% increase over 2006–07.
The average age of rolling stock had increased by almost one year since 2006–07 and had risen to an average age of 14.69 years by 2007–08.
On average, rolling stock for London and south east operators was around 14 years old at the end of 2007–08 Q4, while the average age of rolling stock for long-distance and regional operators was just over 17 years.
By Daniel Garrun
