Green Blog
07 March 2011
Let the train take the strain - not our wallets
I fork out the best part of two grand a year for my daily commute - about 20 miles each way. Two thousand pounds!
It's embarrassing, is what it is. When overseas friends of mine visit I spend considerable energy apologising profusely for the cost of train travel in the UK. I've found getting the train around Europe to be a genuinely pleasant experience, and one that doesn't leave a hole in the wallet large enough to drive a locomotive through.
You may have noticed that it's getting even dearer. The Government admitted last month that the cost of train travel has gone up by 55 per cent (in real terms) since 1980, while the total cost of motoring has actually fallen.
And fares are going to skyrocket by 25 per cent in the next four years. That's why we support the Campaign for Better Transport's excellent Fair Fares Now campaign.
Meanwhile, the Government is waxing lyrical about its plans for a new High Speed Rail line. This new project will cost billions, take getting on for two decades to build, but not do anything to make my train journey any cheaper or less crowded.
So we know that money could be found to make the railways better and cheaper immediately, but instead it's being shunted down the wrong set of tracks. Meanwhile, on we slog on our overcrowded old-hat trains, paying handsomely for the privilege.
This week the Government's promised to let us know how it'll wean the nation off oil. Well, never mind new vanity projects - we need public transport to be proud of, right now. The Government should make our railways cheaper so the train really can take the strain - rather than our wallets.
Dave Powell, Economics team
© Friends of the Earth
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