Commuters insist rail fare rises not justified as demand for travel plummets

RAIL passengers in England and Wales have been hit by above inflation fare rises despite the collapse in demand.

Ticket prices have increased by around 2.6 per cent, leading to accusations that the UK Government is “pricing the railways out of existence”. The figure represents the Retail Prices Index measure of inflation from July 2020, plus one percentage point.

The Scottish Government has imposed smaller rises of 1.6% and 0.6% for peak and off-peak travel respectively.

Examples of fare hikes include a Brighton-london annual season ticket going up by £128 to £5,108 and a Manchester-glasgow offpeak return rising by £2.30 to £90.60.

Demand for rail travel has plummeted during the coronavirus pandemic, with passenger numbers currently down 85%.

Network Rail boss Sir Peter Hendy said last week that the volume of journeys by commuters may only recover to 60% of what it was before the outbreak.

Fare rises in England have mirrored RPI since January 2014, but the Department for Transport (DFT) axed the policy due to the “unprecedented taxpayer support” handed to the rail industry during the coronavirus pandemic. The UK, Scottish and Welsh governments took over rail franchise agreements from train operators in March 2020, following the collapse in demand for travel caused by the virus crisis.

This is expected to cost the Westminster Government alone around £10 billion by mid-2021.

Fares usually become more expensive on the first working day of every year, but the 2021 rise was deferred due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Bruce Williamson, of pressure group Railfuture, described the increase as “the usual annual punishment for rail passengers, just slightly delayed”.

A DFT spokeswoman said it was the lowest rise in four years “despite unprecedented taxpayer support for the rail industry”.