TRAIN PAIN
TICKETS ARE CONFUSING, CARRIAGES ARE CROWDED, AND IT’S ALL TOO EXPENSIVE, RAIL PASSENGERS SAY
MORE than half of all train passengers think the cost of fares is poor value for money, according to a new government survey.
The Department for Transport study, which is run every three years, found that 55 per cent of short distance train users rated the cost of fares as either “fairly” or “very” poor.
That is up from 48 per cent in 2015 the last time the survey was carried out.
It would seem overcrowding is a problem for rail customers, with nearly nearly four in every 10 passengers (38 per cent) describing the room available to sit or stand comfortably as fairly or very poor.
That’s up from the 36 per cent of customers who said the same in 2015.
The proportion of respondents who thought punctuality and reliability was fairly or very poor nearly doubled over the three-year peiod, from 12 per cent in 2015 to 22 per cent in 2018.
The survey also highlighted what people think about the current ticketing system.
More than a quarter of train users (28 per cent), and 60 per cent of non-users said that they didn’t understand the range of tickets available - roughly the same as in 2015.
Some 29 per cent of train users also said that they thought there were too many different types of train ticket.
However more than half (53 per cent) of rail passengers said there were about the right number of ticket types.
A recent report from the the Public Accounts Committee warned that more problems lie ahead for train users in 2019 after a “year from hell”.
It painted a picture of poor transparency, confusion and mismanagement at the Department for Transport.
Meg Hillier, chair of the Committee, said that “2018 was a year from hell for many rail users and unless the government gets a grip there is every chance that passengers will suffer in 2019 as well.
“The root and branch review will report later in 2019 and must then be implemented, so passengers have sometime to wait for any improvements arising from its recommendations.
“The Department for Transport must set out clear governance and accountability structures for the rail system, and move swiftly to provide other important information.”
A Department for Transport spokesperson said: “Our absolute priority is delivering the reliable services that passengers expect, which is why we are investing a record £48bn to deliver improvements in performance, punctuality and capacity.
“We are also taking action to reduce the cost to fare payers and for the sixth year running have capped regulated fares in line with inflation.
“We have also launched the independently-chaired root-andbranch review of our railway, ensuring all parts of the rail industry are focused on putting passengers first.”