Grumpy passengers demand Government action over rail fare hikes

Despite living in the north of England where folk are well known to be friendlier, I seldom mutter more than a few words to my fellow commuters on the 07.54 to Leeds each morning.

So this week I was impressed to see train passengers down in London getting together to make a noise at Campaign for Better Transport's protest against fair hikes in Waterloo station.

It's clear I'm not the only passenger furious at hearing the news that commuter fares will rise by eight per cent next year - at a whopping three per cent above inflation. Even worse, the Government plans to increase them by around 30 per cent by 2015.

My local paper is saying we can expect at least a 10 per cent rise in January. That will mean I have to fork out at least an extra £144 a year.

Making train travel more expensive doesn't sound to me like the policies of the "greenest government ever" David Cameron promised us.

Rail is, after all, a low-carbon alternative to driving cars and flying. If we want to cut carbon emissions from transport - and to meet our legal carbon targets we must, because transport accounts for a quarter of UK emissions - it makes more sense to cut rail fares to encourage people to use trains more. Fare hikes are likely to force people back into cars, adding to emissions, pollution and congestion on already jam-packed roads.

Transport Secretary Theresa Villiers says the price rises are needed to pay for improvements to rail services and that it's unfair to make taxpayers shoulder this burden.

I agree the service needs improvement and that as a train-user I should contribute. But the flawed privatisation that's left Britain's railways so costly to maintain and upgrade is hardly passengers' fault. I'm old enough to remember British Rail - which while far from perfect, was run much more efficiently than Network Rail.

Here's what Friends of the Earth believes the Government should do to stop our fares from rising:

• reduce regulated rail fares to one per cent below inflation
  something the Lib Dems committed to in their election manifesto.
• bring in a fuel tax on domestic flights, as in the USA
  this would raise £460 million each year that could subsidise cheaper rail travel.
• ensure more cost-effective privatised rail industry 
  Sir Roy McNulty's recent report for the Government identified a 34 per cent efficiency gap between Network Rail and the best European operators.
• sort out long-term spending priorities
  Is ploughing billions into High Speed Rail (HS2) wise? HS2 could ease overcrowding on some of our commuter lines - but it will do little to cut carbon or entice people out of cars and planes. The cash could be better spent on improving our existing rail network - and improving local transport in towns and cities across the country with things like tram networks, better buses and cycle lanes.

These schemes would cut climate-changing emissions, improve our health and make access to jobs and services easier for the quarter of UK households without a car. I think that's a 'win, win, win' then.

Rail should be at the core of an efficient, affordable, low-carbon transport system - but rocketing fares will make it increasingly the preserve of the rich. And that's why I urge all grumpy rail passengers to sign this petition for Fair Fares Now.

Have a safe journey.

Richard Dyer, Transport Campaigner