09 October 2025 •
Local rail operator c2c Railway has seen a robust resurgence in commuter travel following the launch of Pay as you Go with contactless ticketing across the entire line in February 2025.
Despite modern working from home trends, c2c passenger volumes have recovered to over 80% of pre-2020 levels, while commuter habits have evolved significantly. Season tickets, which accounted for over 40% of c2c journeys in 2019, now represent circa 15%.
Instead, passengers are opting for the flexibility off-peak daily tickets, reflecting the shift in working patterns in the UK. Mondays and Fridays continue to grow year-on-year, with in-peak journeys across the week growing at around 5% in 2024/25.
In February, c2c became the first railway operator to offer pay as you go (PAYG/contactless) across its entire network in the UK, simplifying customer journeys and offering a more seamless way to travel. The expansion of PAYG has seen over 60,000 additional contactless taps each week.
Eleni Jordan, c2c Commercial and Interim Customer Director, said: “We launched PAYG with contactless ticketing in February 2025 and it has been incredibly successful with over one million taps since the launch.
“It provides our customers with another seamless way of using the c2c route, by simply tapping in and tapping out. This provides an easy-to-use solution which offers speed and convenience for every journey – with c2c seeing over 60,000 additional contactless taps each week as a result.
“We realised the challenges of 2025 are different to those that existed before 2020, which is why we have had to evolve to a new way of thinking and embrace the change in customer needs,” she added.
As of July, c2c has recorded over 1,000,000 taps across the line and has added another level in the ease of making a c2c journey. Today, c2c plays a central role in helping millions of commuters from south Essex and east London reach their workplaces every year.
ENDS
NOTES TO EDITORS
About c2c
- c2c is the award-winning train operator running services between Fenchurch Street and Shoeburyness, serving 26 stations in East London and South Essex.
- c2c is one of the UK’s most punctual and popular train operators and nearly 37.3 million journeys are made on its services every year.
- The operation of all c2c services transferred into public ownership on Sunday 20 July 2025 and is managed by DFTO (DfT Operator Ltd).
- For more information email mediaenquiries@c2crail.net
Images:
Featured Image: Jen Craft, MP, using PAYG
Second Image: Eleni Jordan, c2c Commercial and Interim Customer Director
Third Image: c2c 720 Train