Fares set to rocket next month

RAIL UNION RMT has reiterated its call for public ownership of the railways, as it releases a predicted sample of new rail season ticket prices that will be confirmed next month.

The Secretary of State for Transport has said that fares will be increased by no more than the Retail Prices Index, but as this is predicted to come in at between 3 and 4 per cent, passengers will still face big increases. RMT has calculated what a 3.5% increase would be on some key routes as detailed below.
 
The union has also pointed out that passengers travelling on services in the UK operated by Italian, German and Dutch state railways, are shelling out multiples of what their counterparts elsewhere in the EU are paying for comparable journeys on the continent run by the same operator. For example:
 
•    Passengers in the UK travelling on Italian state owned C2C railways are paying 2.4 times more than their counterparts on similar services run by the same operator in Italy;
 
•    Passengers in the UK travelling on German state owned Arriva North railways are paying a third more than their counterparts on similar services run by the same operator in Germany; and
 
•    Passengers in the UK travelling on Dutch state owned Greater Anglia railways are paying twice as much as their Dutch counterparts on similar services run by the same operator in The Netherlands.
 
RMT General Secretary Mick Cash said:
 
“UK rail passengers should be bracing themselves for the fare hike announcement next month. As inflation is running high, it will be yet more grim news for workers struggling to make ends meet.
 
“To add insult to injury, passengers travelling on lines in the UK operated by Italian, German and Dutch state railways, could be paying around two and a half times more than their counterparts on comparable journeys on the continent run by the same operator.
 
“That means UK passengers on our clapped out privatised railway, are paying more and more to help keep fares down on other European railways.
 
“It is a national scandal that this Government is perpetuating by allowing more foreign state owned outfits to bid for British rail services, while simultaneously blocking any British public ownership of our railways.”

Ends

Notes:
 
The rate of RPI inflation for the year to July 2017, due to be announced by the Office for National Statistics at 9:30am on Tuesday 15 August, will set the increase in regulated fares, which will come in from January 2018.
 
 
Table below is a sample of new season ticket prices on the basis of a 3.5% increase:

 *Responsibility for fares for Scotrail and the Caledonian Sleeper are devolved to the Scottish Government. Previously regulated fares in Scotland have been set at RPI.
 
 
Below is a sample of new monthly season ticket prices for passengers on European state owned lines in UK, contrasted with comparable journeys on the continent:
 
Season ticket prices taken from the National Rail website:
http://ojp.nationalrail.co.uk/service/seasonticket/search
 
Comparison with Italian operator’s prices in the UK and Italy
Southend Central to London: currently £327, in 2018 will be c£339
http://ojp.nationalrail.co.uk/service/seasonticket/search
 
Civitavecchia to Rome: from 127 Euros (c£142) – ie only 42% of the predicted 2018 UK fare
http://www.trenitalia.com/ [select abonnamenti e carnet]
 
So the same operator, will be charging passengers in the UK, for travelling a similar distance/ making a similar journey, a fare which is 2.4 times more expensive as that which is available in the operator’s home country.
 
Comparison with German state operator’s prices in the UK and Germany
Leeds to Manchester: currently £404, in 2018 will be c£418
http://ojp.nationalrail.co.uk/service/seasonticket/tickets
 
Dortmund to Dusseldorf: 276 Euros (c£309) - ie only 74% of the predicted 2018 UK fare
https://www.bahn.de/p/view/angebot/pendler/fern-und-nahverkehr/monatskarten-im-abo.shtml
 
So the same operator, will be charging passengers in the UK, for travelling a similar distance/ making a similar journey, a fare which is a third more expensive as that which is available in the operator’s home country.
 
Comparison with Dutch operator’s prices in the UK and The Netherlands
King’s Lynn to London: currently £864, in 2018 will be c£894
http://ojp.nationalrail.co.uk/service/seasonticket/tickets
 
Zwolle to Rotterdam: 410 Euros (c£459) – i.e. 51% of the predicted 2018 UK fare
http://www.ns.nl/en/season-tickets/traject-vrij.html
 
So the same operator, will be charging passengers in the UK, for travelling a similar distance/ making a similar journey, a fare which is twice as expensive as that which is available in the operator’s home country.