Rail fare rise is a ‘slap in the face’

Hike of 3.2% amid service concerns unacceptable – MSP

Long-suffering Fifers have reacted with fury to news train fares will go up once again in the new year.

Commuters are bracing themselves for a 3.2% price hike on peak time journeys and season tickets from January, with Scot Rail fares, on average, due to increase by an average of 2.8%.

The news follows months of problems on the railways and on the Fife Circle line in particular, with reports of stop skipping, overcrowding, delays and cancellations.

Shadow Scottish secretary and Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath MP Lesley Laird described the move as a “slap in the face to hard-working Fifers”, while SNP Mid Fife and Glenrothes MSP Jenny Gilruth said it was “completely unacceptable”.

Short-changed Fife travellers who have suffered stop-skipping, a dearth of carriages, delays and cancellations have reacted with fury that fares are to rise again in the new year.

ScotRail passengers will see their tickets hiked by an average of 2.8% from January, a lower than average fare increase than in England and Wales, but commuters who use anytime peak or season tickets in Fife still face the prospect of a 3.2% jump next month.

According to Office of Rail and Road data, it will be the largest rise since January 2013.

SNP Mid Scotland and Fife MSP Jenny Gilruth said she was shocked to hear yesterday that an average journey from Markinch to Edinburgh was £5 more expensive per mile than for those travelling from the capital to Glasgow.

“It is completely unacceptable for ScotRail to discriminate against those of us who live in the kingdom and use the train,” she added.

“Fife used to be penalised by road tolls – that was unfair and that was changed.

Labour MP for Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath Lesley Laird said commuters will be “rightly furious”.

“Not only have they been let down all year by shambolic, unreliable train services, they’re now being forced to pay a price hike for the privilege of being let down,” she said.

Many long-distance commuters will see the annual cost of getting to work increase by more than £100.

Examples of increases in annual season tickets include £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).

Fewer than half (45%) of passengers are satisfied with the value for money of train tickets, according to a survey by watchdog Transport Focus.

The organisation’s chief executive, Anthony Smith, said: “Until day-to-day reliability returns – with fewer significant delays and cancellations – passenger trust won’t begin to recover.”

Train punctuality slipped to a 12-year low in the summer and 14% of services failed to meet the industry’s punctuality target in the 12 months to November 10.

That means one in seven trains arrived at terminating stations more than five minutes late for commuter services or 10 minutes late for longdistance journeys.

Rail, Maritime and Transport union general secretary Mick Cash said: “This latest fare hike is another kick in the teeth for passengers on Britain’s rip-off privatised railways.”

We all face increasing pressure to be less reliant on our cars these days. Amid dire warnings over the impact on the environment, we are urged to ditch our own motors in favour of public transport.

But for the calls to be heeded, the alternatives must be reliable, efficient – and above all affordable.

The significant hike in rail prices set to greet consumers after the festive break is hardly the best incentive.

Picture: Mhairi Edwards. ScotRail passengers will see their tickets hiked by an average of 2.8% from January.