In the 12 months since customer queries to train operator Northern were answered through a WhatsApp group in the global messaging platform, it has received 8,000 messages.

Northern’s WhatsApp group is driven entirely by Artificial Intelligence (AI). In doing so, it has freed up over 1,000 hours (1,277 hours) of employees’ time that can instead be used in answering more complex enquiries.

Soon after Northern officially launched the service in August 2023 it was nominated for a Transport Ticketing Global Award.

Before the WhatsApp service was rolled out, Northern conducted extensive enquiries with customers to gain an insight into what the top queries would be, and to help the developers during the design process.

Contributing to the design process were details of existing queries received by the train operator’s customer experience centre, station teams, and on-board train crew.

Before the service went live, it was trialled with focus groups. It is also being continually monitored as it evolves to ensure it meets the needs of customers.

Customers using the app can send messages requesting live train times, service updates, and information about any associated disruptions. They can also ask for information about options for catching onward ground transport connections such as local taxi companies.

It can also be used to inform customers about how to request assistance, enquire about lost property, report a problem, submit a delay repay claim or make a complaint.

To use the WhatsApp service, customers first need to create Northern as a WhatsApp contact with the phone number 07870 606060. They can then send their query using the same phrases as if it were a live operator.

For example, if a customer requested the time of the next train from Blackpool to Preston, they would be sent a reply asking them to confirm which station in Blackpool they wished to depart from, and which Preston they were going to as it could be Preston in Lancashire, Preston Park, or Long Preston.

The customer would then receive the times of the next trains, the departure platforms, and whether it was delayed, together with a link to Northern’s ticket site.

Earlier this year, Northern carried out a customer survey to find out what were the most popular apps they used while travelling by train. National Rail has also been using WhatsApp since 2021 to send out ‘Alert Me’ messages to registered users.

We launched our WhatsApp service to simplify the process of getting live train information to customers ‘on the go’. It functions entirely on AI and is therefore available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

By answering thousands of basic questions for us in the blink of an eye, it frees up time that our customer experience centre can instead dedicate to the more in-depth, complex enquiries we receive.

We hope to develop the service this year so that users can ask any question you can find the answer to on our website via WhatsApp instead.

Mark Powles, commercial and customer director at Northern