This year’s Britain’s Got Talent winner, Richard Jones was challenged by Trainline, Europe’s number one independent retailer of train tickets, to make 1,248 paper tickets disappear, matching the number of stations that are now mobile ticket-enabled.
The Royal Variety Show headliner stunned travellers at Manchester Piccadilly station with a surprise set in which he highlighted the magic of mobile tickets and showcased some of the tricks he will be performing for The Queen.
Mobile tickets could save time for the three million Brits that travel by train every day as tickets are bought online, stored on a traveller’s phone in the Trainline app and don’t require collection.
The ease of mobile tickets will be especially welcome as queuing, long considered to be a national past time, has appeared on the list of British-isms we would most like to see disappear. Standing in a line was chosen by one in five as a British problem they’d like to banish, along with American spelling of British words (33 per cent) and social awkwardness (19 per cent). Getting caught on hold with terrible music came top of the list with 35 per cent of the vote.
The public were also asked, if they had a magical app that could perform one task, what would they choose? Bypassing queues at the train station was selected by one in seven (15 per cent) whilst 14 per cent would like a button to ensure their favourite sports team won. Unsurprisingly, an instant cup of tea (16 per cent) and an app that conjured up a roast dinner (21 per cent) were some of the top responses.
Mobile tickets can now be purchased on Trainline for over 1.5million journey combinations across the UK, meaning at least one of these options is now a reality.
The country’s disdain for queueing or ‘Quexit’, has been further highlighted with the research revealing what we’d be willing to do to get out of a queue. A day out with the in-laws was the preferred choice for one in ten and more than a quarter said they would happily delete their Facebook for the day to avoid having to join a line.
Richard Jones commented: “It was a unique experience performing for the nation’s rail passengers. Mobile tickets save so much time, particularly for me as I travel up and down the country on a regular basis, so the option to bypass queues and board a train as if by magic is a no brainer.”
