For a record fifth consecutive quarter, London North Eastern Railway (LNER) has topped the table for post-pandemic passenger recovery.

In figures published on Thursday, 7th October by the Office of Rail and Road (ORR), more customers returned to London North Eastern Railway services when compared with pre-pandemic usage than any other franchised operator.

Over 15 million passengers have travelled across the company’s network so far this year, which is more than twice the figure for the same period last year.

According to data from the Office of Rail and Road, passenger numbers now exceed pre-Covid levels, making London North Eastern Railway the first franchised train company in the country to reach this milestone.

The company also achieved European success this week as, for the second year in a row, it was named Travel Partner of the Year in the Rail Operator category of the Business Travel Awards Europe 2022.

Business Travel News Group hosts these awards, which recognise and celebrate industry leadership, partnership, and innovation across the travel sector.

The judges praised the company for its innovative approach to championing rail, raising the profile of the industry, excellent customer service, innovation in onboard catering, and its popular loyalty scheme LNER Perks, which now has 500,000 members.

The company’s catering team has also been shortlisted in two categories of The Caterer’s Foodservice Catey’s Awards 2022, which is due to take place later this month.

It is among the finalists in the Best Use of Technology category for at-seat service ‘Let’s Eat at Your Seat’ and the Retail and Leisure Caterer of the Year Award.

David Horne, Managing Director at LNER, said:

“At LNER we are proud to lead the industry when it comes to welcoming people back to rail. For the past five consecutive quarters we have seen more and more passengers returning to our services. We believe our customer service and digital innovations are a key part of that success, offering people first-class customer service, greater choice and flexibility and that work continues. The LNER app and website make it simpler for people to plan their journeys and sign up for live journey updates. We were the first to introduce at-seat ordering with Let’s Eat At Your Seat in Standard, where customers can use a QR code to order refreshments directly to their seat.”