UK expands ticketless train trial
Rail passengers in South Yorkshire can now join hundreds across England in trialling new digital ticketing technology.
From Monday (3 November), people travelling between Sheffield and Doncaster can take advantage of simpler and more flexible ticket options when they travel on Northern rail services.
More than 2,000 journeys and counting have already been made under similar trials on East Midlands Railway and Northern services, which both launched in September 2025.
Digital ticketing trials allow passengers to check in and check out seamlessly on rail journeys, using a location-identifying app on their phone. The app tracks journeys using GPS (Global Positioning System) technology and then automatically charges participants at the end of the day. For ticket inspections and to go through ticket barriers, a unique bar code will pop up in the app to be scanned.
This technology replaces the need for paper tickets or more commonly used mobile tickets bought online or in-app ahead of journeys. Doing away with the need to plan and book travel in advance, the app tracks which trains passengers take, detecting when they have left the rail network.
Thanks to government backing, passengers taking part in the trial will get £15 worth of free travel, with credit automatically added to their account. The scheme makes it easier for people to choose rail and guarantees the best value travel on the day for full fare paying adults.
In a further boost for train users in the North, another trial of the technology will launch on the Sheffield to Barnsley route run by Northern on 1 December 2025.
Passengers taking part in Northern’s first trial of the technology have described the technology as ‘easy to install…and simple to use’, while others have said it is ‘much better than the chore of buying tickets in advance’.
“We’re proud to be at the forefront of modernising rail travel in the North. The success of the first trial has shown that passengers value the simplicity and flexibility that technology brings,” said Alex Hornby, Commercial and Customer Director at Northern.
“This second trial is an exciting next step and we’re excited to offer customers in that area a smarter, easier way to travel. This is about removing barriers and making rail the obvious choice for everyday journeys.”
