'Further support' - train company responds after criticism over Chelsea v Leeds United FA Cup issue

Whites supporters will be making their way back to Yorkshire on Wednesday night following the fifth round tie, which was confirmed by Leeds’ replay win over Plymouth on February 6, but can only make one of the late trains scheduled to depart from London Kings Cross Station. Tickets remain on sale for the 10:00pm service to Leeds, with the cheapest ticket priced at £41.70 on Trainline.com, but the 7:30pm kick-off at Chelsea rules out any possibility of fans making that train. The last available service, due to depart Kings Cross at 23:33pm, is now showing as sold out. On Wednesday evening, however, a dwindling number of ‘anytime tickets’ were still on sale at a cost of over £200, prompting a supporter to contact the operator, London North Eastern Railway [LNER], on social medial platform x.com. Sam Jacobs posted: “Country is a joke. @LNER making the 23.33 train £220 knowing Leeds fans need to get back to Leeds and won’t make the 22.00 train when that is £47.” In response, LNER’s official account said: “Hello. That service is fully booked so, you'd be buying an anytime ticket (the most expensive) in order to board hence the price difference. Apologies about this.”

Leeds fans in turn responded with criticism of the pricing and the implied suggestion that a ticket costing more than £200 would only guarantee standing room for the almost three-hour journey back to Leeds. One replied: “So they pay extra for a train where they have to stand? Absolute joke.”

An alternative route back to Leeds is the 11:00pm Kings Cross service to York, which arrives at 01:30am, seven minutes before a train departs York for Leeds, but tickets for the latter are now extremely limited according to Trainline.com and likely to sell out.

The YEP contacted LNER for comment, asking if there was sufficient demand for another train, what thought had been given to the number of Leeds fans attempting to get home from the capital and if the price in question was reasonable for the passenger experience on offer. LNER have now responded, describing demand as ‘unprecedented’ and suggesting that they are still looking at ways to get fans back to Leeds. An LNER spokesperson said “We understand that the FA Cup fifth round game against Chelsea is an important match for Leeds United fans, with many of them travelling with us to and from London on Wednesday 28 February. Due to unprecedented demand for travel back to Leeds on the 23:33 service from London King's Cross, the service has sold out. We’re continuing to work with our partners to explore ways to further support fans travelling back from London after the match.”

Rail provision for travelling fans is at the heart of survey unveiled last week by key rail industry stakeholders the Rail Delivery Group, partnering with the Football Supporters Association, to help ‘understand the issues that matchgoers face when travelling by rail throughout the season.’ According to the FSA website the Rail Delivery Group ‘was established in 2011 by the major passenger and freight train operator groups and Network Rail to take responsibility for coordinating and leading on initiatives across the whole rail industry. In matters which relate to football, they include stakeholders such as the police, the Premier League and FA, as well as the FSA, in their discussions’ and the survey is designed to understand improvements fans would like to see in ticketing and the rail network on matchdays. Leeds supporters have encountered difficulties getting to and from a number of games this season, partly due to kick-off times or issues on the rail network.