The highest price rise in five years is fraction of a simple truth that the government won’t admit: the rail system it created is now broken beyond repair
• Andy McDonald MP is shadow secretary of state for transportThe chancellor,Philip Hammond, has been proper to his word and his government has followed through on his promise. In 2011 he said the railway was a “wealthy man’s toy. The rail industry is doing its level best to deliver on that pledge with Tuesday’s announcement that rail fares will go up by an average of 3.4% in January, and the highest increase in five years. Ticket prices have already risen by 27% since 2010,twice the rate of wages.
Contrast this with fuel duty, which has been frozen for seven years at a cost of £46bn. Or air passenger duty in aviation – untouched for five years. Yet this government has disproportionately penalised rail passengers year after year while linking fare increases to the more punitive retail price index (RPI) rather than the lower consumer price index (CPI). Why?Continue reading...
Source: guardian.co.uk