Rail trips - including in Surrey and Hampshire - fall to lowest levels of annual use on record
The impact of the pandemic has been blamed
Last updated 3rd Jun 2021
Rail passenger journeys across the country have fallen to their lowest levels of annual use since before records began in 1872.
Figures show that South Western Railway recorded 22.4% of passenger usage from April 2020 through to March 2021 - compared with the year 2019-2020.
The statistics are from the regulator, the Office for Rail and Road, and show a similar picture throughout the country, with decreases across all networks.
It says nationally, 388 million journeys were made in 2020-21 (April to March), which equates to only 22% of the 1,739 million made in 2019-20.
Three operators of services in and around London recorded the highest levels of usage relative to 2019-20. TfL Rail (32.5%), London Overground (31.8%) and c2c (31.7%) were the only operators to record at least 30% of the journeys made in 2019-20.
Heathrow Express, which operated throughout the year, recorded the lowest level of usage as a percentage (4.7%) of journeys made in 2019-20.
Total passenger revenue in Great Britain was £1.9 billion in 2020-21, compared to £10.4 billion in 2019-20.
The ORR blames coranavirus, saying the huge drop is "entirely" due to the impact of the pandemic.
Graham Richards, Director of Planning and Performance at the Office of Rail and Road, said:
"This unprecedented fall in passenger numbers, the lowest annual fall since the time series began, has clearly had an impact on both rail usage and ticketing revenue.
"Despite this, recent estimates published by the Department for Transport show that rail usage has recovered to around 45% of pre-COVID levels by the end of May 2021.
"ORR continues to work closely to support industry and help passengers back on to the railway safely."