The rail industry has announced that Britain’s rail fares will rise by an average of 3.1% on 2 January.
The annual cost of getting to work will be more than £100 for daily travellers. The increase of yearly season tickets cover £148 for Brighton to London (from £4,696 to £4,844), £130 for Gloucester to Birmingham (from £4,108 to £4,238), and £100 for Manchester to Liverpool (from £3,152 to £3,252), as stated by an ITV report.
This will be the largest rise since January 2013, according to Office of Rail and Road’s data.
Paul Plummer, the Chief Executive of the industry body, the Rail Delivery Group (RDG), told ITV: “Nobody wants to pay more to travel, especially those who experienced significant disruption earlier this year.
“Money from fares is underpinning the improvements to the railway that passengers want and which ultimately help boost the wider economy.
“That means more seats, extra services and better connections right across the country.”
The Mayor London, Sadiq Khan, confirmed tube and bus fares will not rise in the next year.
JUST ANNOUNCED: We’re freezing @TfL fares for the third year in a row next year, saving millions of Londoners money on their daily journeys – and new weekly capping will help Oyster Card users save even more. https://t.co/h7yo0iYBUH
— Sadiq Khan (@SadiqKhan) November 30, 2018
There have been calls for prices to be frozen following chaos caused by the implementation of new timetables in May.
Andy McDonald, the Shadow Transport Secretary, told BBC the increase showed “a government and rail industry out of touch with passenger concerns”, while Mick Cash, the RMT Union General Secretary, called it “another kick in the teeth for passengers on Britain’s rip-off privatised railways”.
Comments and opinions from Twitter:
This increase is a real slap in the face to long suffering rail passengers. Given the chaos on our railways since the last price hike, Chris Grayling should be delivering a fares freeze on those appalling services which should be funded by the train operators. https://t.co/Fd32TE6T8f
— Andy McDonald MP 💙 (@AndyMcDonaldMP) November 30, 2018
Today it was announced that rail fares for hard pressed commuters are on the rise again 📈
🚨#GMCA Leaders have just passed an emergency resolution opposing today’s rail fare increases and condemning the appalling performance of rail services across the North 📉
— Greater Manchester Combined Authority (@greatermcr) November 30, 2018
https://twitter.com/JackHarding_94/status/1068492350576623616
The Voice of London has reached out to the Minister of Transport but has not heard back.
Words and Graph: Duha Ali | Subbing: Leyi Chen