Rail travellers could pay for train journey by fingerprint or iris scan under new plans

Facial recognition is already used at some UK airports to speed up the border control process

Biometric technology, including fingerprint and iris scans, could enable fares to be automatically processed (Arnaud Ostro/Creative Commons)

The rail industry has come up with a plan that may as well be out of a science-fiction movie to cope with growing demand and overcrowding: charging rail passengers for journeys by fingerprint or iris scan.

The Rail Delivery Group (RDG), the organisation representing train operators and Network Rail, claims biometric technology would enable fares to be automatically charged marking the start of an era that could radically accelerate commute times.

The technology represents the next step from travellers being able to use smartphones’ Bluetooth signals to open station barriers. That will be trialled on Chiltern Railways’ route between London Marylebone and Oxford Parkway over the coming months.

The use of digital signalling technology will also allow trains to operate closer together, cutting delay, according to the RDG.

Paul Plummer, the chief executive of RDG, told the Press Association that the network was “increasingly full” and steps should be taken to consider the “solution of tomorrow”.

He said: “This blueprint sets out how we can harness digital technology to make journeys better for passengers and freight customers on a railway that’s simpler and easier to use.”

Facial recognition is already used at some UK airports to speed up the border control process.

In Australia, airport passengers will soon not need to show their passports, and will instead be processed by biometric recognition of their faces, irises or fingerprints. The Australian government has a goal of automating 90 per cent of air traveller processing by 2020.