31/07/2009

• Recession-busting prices at South West Trains and East Midlands Trains
• £10 special deals to help families get away for less this summer
• Low-cost journeys to London and cheaper day-trip destinations

Transport giant Stagecoach is offering more than one million bargain rail tickets this summer to help hard-pressed families beat the credit crunch.

Recession-busting prices are on offer at South West Trains and East Midlands Trains, which jointly carry around 190 million passengers a year.

South West Trains launched one of its biggest ever summer ticket offers earlier this week, offering significantly reduced travel on the majority of weekends throughout August.

The Midsummer Madness promotion will provide customers with the chance to buy a day return ticket to travel anywhere on the South West Trains network for just £10, or £5 for kids, providing a great opportunity to visit one of many popular day-trip destinations.

On East Midlands Trains, a series of 'Red Dot Days' will be taking place throughout the summer, designed to encourage people to 'give the train a try' for the bargain price of just £10 day return, or £5 for kids. The company's first Red Dot Day, which took place at the newly opened Corby station on 22 July, resulted in over 1300 people taking advantage of a £10 ticket to London. Three quarters of the passengers travelling said it was the first time they had ever used the train, marking the day as a success, and hopefully giving people a first hand opportunity to experience the benefits of travelling by rail.

East Midlands Trains will be holding further Red Dot Days at Chesterfield station today (Thursday 30 July) and the newly opened East Midlands Parkway station on Saturday 15 August, with further dates in August to follow.

In addition, East Midlands Trains recently ran its first 'Seat Sale', offering thousands of discounted tickets for travel during August.

Brian Souter, Stagecoach Group Chief Executive said: "Families are having to watch every penny at the moment and many are deciding to stay at home for their summer break.

"We've got some fantastic destinations and attractions across our networks. These great value prices mean families can enjoy the convenience and comfort of the train to get there and entertain the kids closer to home for less."

Check online for further details, including full terms and conditions. For the South West Trains Midsummer Madness campaign, visit southwesttrains.co.uk. Information on East Midlands Trains is available at eastmidlandstrains.co.uk, or go to the dedicated Red Dot Day website at reddotday.co.uk.

ENDS

For media enquiries, please contact Stagecoach Group Communications on 01738 442111 or email media@stagecoachgroup.com.

Notes to Editors

Stagecoach Group is a leading international public transport group, with extensive operations in the UK, United States and Canada. The company employs around 30,000 people, and operates bus, coach, rail, and tram services.

Stagecoach operates the South Western rail franchise, which includes the South West Trains and Island Line networks. South West Trains, the UK's biggest commuter rail network, runs nearly 1700 trains a day in the south-west of England out of London Waterloo. Island Line, on the Isle of Wight, has been designated a Community Rail Partnership.

In addition, Stagecoach runs the East Midlands rail franchise. East Midlands Trains operates high-speed long distance services from London St. Pancras to Sheffield, Derby and Nottingham, Liverpool - Norwich and regional services throughout Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire and Lincolnshire.

Stagecoach also has a 49% shareholding in Virgin Rail Group, which operates the West Coast inter-city rail franchise.