More than two million train tickets will be sold at reduced prices under a government program which begins next week.
Advance and off-peak tickets will be reduced by up to half during a week-long sale starting Tuesday for travel across the UK between January 17 and March 31.
The Department for Transport (DfT) said passengers saved around £5.8 million during a similar promotion last year, in which more than 600,000 tickets were sold, and that it had instructed the railway companies to “make an even bigger sale” this time.
While representing a potential savings for some customers, the sale comes less than two months before tickets on hundreds of routes are set to increase by 4.6%.
A limited number of discounted tickets will be available but will save customers who purchase them considerable amounts of money.
For example, a trip from London to Newcastle will drop from £52.10 to £23.60, according to the DfT.
The price of a journey from Nottingham to Manchester will be £9.20, while from Glasgow to Inverness will cost £14.10.
Discounts only apply to advance fares, which are tickets that must be used on a specific service.
Most train operators participate, but not Hull Trains, Lumo and Merseyrail.
The sale comes with an increase in regulated rail fares in England of 4.6% from March 2, while the price of most rail cards will increase by £5. Unregulated fare increases are decided by train operators, but generally increase by a similar amount.
Around 45% of rail fares are regulated by the government in England, Wales and Scotland – but the rise only affects travel within England.
No announcement of fare increases has yet been made by the Scottish or Welsh governments.
In October, the Campaign for Better Transport group said rising rail fares beyond inflation and increasing the cost of rail cards was a “kick in the teeth” for people who rely on public transport.
