Rail fares increases: They wouldn’t dare, would they?
Wednesday sees the release of July’s inflation figure which is regularly used to set next year’s rail fare increases. This year it is expected to be around 7%.
“A 7% fare hike would be bad enough” said Railfuture director Neil Middleton. “But that’s the CPI measure of inflation. If the government goes back to using the higher RPI figure, that could lead to rail fares going up by 10% or more. They wouldn’t dare, would they?
"With an election not that far off, the government needs to remember that rail travellers have votes too. With a cost of living crisis, and at a time when parts of the planet are literally on fire, it’s more important than ever that green travel by rail is made more affordable.
“The government has chosen to stick with its fuel duty cut of 5p a litre, costing £4.8bn per year in lost revenue. If there is enough money to continue to hold down fuel duty, then surely there is enough money to hold down rail fares as well?
“Yet again we are probably going to see another decision taken inisolation, bumping up rail fares by inflation without taking into account the wider implications such as net zero – and not caring whether they price people off the railways.”
Please see Railfuture’s detailed commentary on the 2023 fares rise “The2023 Fare Rise and Deckchairs (on the Titanic)” – at:
https://railfuture.org.uk/article1900-The-2023-Fare-Rise-and-Deckchairs”