Trainline narrows losses as rail travel rebounds from pandemic

Online ticket distributor Trainline narrowed annual pre-tax losses as travellers returned to rail travel after the lifting of Covid restrictions.

The company reported a loss of £15m compared with a massive £106m loss a year ago. Core earnings came in at £39m for the 12 months to February 28 against a loss of £25m in 2021.

Group net ticket sales rose 222% year-on-year to £2.5bn and revenue surged 181% to £189m.

Looking ahead, the company forecast current-year net sales of £3.8bn- £4.2bn with revenue in the range of £280m-£310m and adjusted earnings of up to £75m “assuming no significant disruption to rail travel”.

Trainline said it was looking to cash in on the opening up of competition on domestic routes in Europe.

“Domestic competition between rail carriers in Europe is stepping up meaningfully. Following the recent launch of new entrants Ouigo in Spain and Trenitalia in France, carrier competition now exists on 6 of the top 10 high speed routes in Europe,” the company said.

“As already evidenced in markets like Italy, greater competition in rail increases value and choice for customers in rail and enhances the role of Trainline as a third-party aggregator. By positioning Trainline as the marketplace of choice for European rail travel, we are well placed to significantly scale our international business in France, Italy and Spain over the medium term.”