Cash strapped commuters brace for ticket price hike
RAIL fares set by the government could rise by 3.5 per cent next year, pushing commuting costs up at much more than average earnings.
Figures released yesterday showed that the retail prices index (RPI), a measure of inflation, rose by 2.5 per cent in the year to July. The government typically uses the measure plus one percentage point to increase regulated fares.
Last year, chancellor George Osborne announced during the Autumn Statement that the above-inflation increase would not apply.
The Department for Transport yesterday refused to confirm that the government would take the same decision again. But rail minister Claire Perry said: “Although a decision on fare rises for 2015 hasn’t yet been taken, we are looking closely at the cost of travel as part of our ongoing commitment to help hard-working people.”
An increase of 3.5 per cent would add hundreds of pounds to some annual season tickets, putting £190.40 on a 12-month ticket from London to Birmingham New Street station, and £120.12 to a year’s travel from Stevenage to the capital.
The hike also would be far above recent growth in wages, which actually dropped by 0.2 per cent in the year to June, years.
Despite the dreary outlook for commuters, Dan Lewis of the Institute of Directors said suggestions that the rail network should be re-nationalised would “not mean lower ticket prices. It means a greater burden on taxpayers and more public debt, with no guarantee of improved services of greater investment.”