BRITAIN’S rail fares will increase by an average of 2.7% on January 2, the rail industry has announced.
Some long-distance commuters will see the annual cost of getting to work increase by more than £100.
Fewer than half (47%) of passengers are satisfied with the value for money of train tickets, according to the latest survey by watchdog Transport Focus.
Network Rail data shows that only 65% of trains arrived at their scheduled station stops within one minute of the timetable in the past 12 months.
Paul Plummer, chief executive of industry body the Rail Delivery Group (RDG) – which revealed the average increase in fares, said: “We understand that no one wants to pay more to travel, which is why train companies have for the third year in a row held the average fare increases below inflation while still investing to improve journeys.
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“Passengers will benefit from 1000 extra, improved train carriages and over 1000 extra weekly services in 2020. The industry will continue to push for changes to fares regulations to enable a better range of affordable, mix and match fares and reduced overcrowding on some of the busiest routes.”
Transport Focus chief executive Anthony Smith said: “We speak to hundreds of thousands of passengers each year and we know that less than half feel they get value for money.
“After a year of patchy performance, passengers just want a consistent day-to-day service they can rely on.”
The increase in around 45% of fares, including season tickets, is regulated by the UK, Scottish and Welsh Governments. This is predominantly capped at July’s RPI inflation figure, which was 2.8%.
Other fare rises are decided by train companies.
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