Rail users believe that the rail industry is lagging behind in using such high tech systems, according to new research published by Passenger Focus.

Despite a large increase in online ticket sales, and the use of the internet and mobile phones by the National Rail Enquires Service, users believe technology could play a bigger role in rail travel, as it does in other aspects of their lives.

These findings, the result of focus group work in five UK cities, were revealed by Passenger Focus chief executive Anthony Smith at the Transit-sponsored Rail Ticketing conference in London this week.

All those questioned agree that technology has an increasingly important role to play in many aspects of daily life but believe rail is lagging behind in using such high tech systems. They also believe such technology can help address current problems, such as long queues, broken ticket machines, penalty fares and complexity of ticket pricing.

"We welcome efforts to provide alternative means of buying tickets as long as they give passengers what they want and help reduce lengths of ticket queues," Smith commented. "We also believe there is a real need to capitalise on the momentum of London's Oyster smartcard and explore the potential for wider application of smartcard technology across the UK's rail network."

Passengers' primary motivation for such technology is the ability to avoid buying separate tickets for each journey. Those already aware of London's Oyster card appreciate the potential benefits of a national roll out of a smartcard type ticket while those unaware of such cards see the theoretical benefits for both rail users and train operators.