‘For the first time in a generation people will see their fares fall’ said Transport Secretary Lord Adonis upon the announcement that rail fares for many users will fall by a paltry 0.4%.
The decrease will affect almost half of UK rail fares and most commuters and is based on the Retail Price Index (RPI) on which regulated rail fares are based. The RPI was at –1.4% in July after a record low of –1.6% in June.
This year rail travellers saw fares increase by 6%, this figure was based on the RPI of 5% recorded in July 2008.
The rules on ticket pricing change in 2010 when most rail companies will be restricted to an annual increase of RPI + 1%. In the past operators have been allowed to increase fares by up to 6% over the RPI rate.
However two operators are exempt from the above and have their own ruling in place. SouthEastern and West Yorkshire PTE will be allowed to increase fares by 3% above RPI in January to help fund additional investment on services in those areas.
Train Operators are expected to make up for the cuts by increasing off peak fares which are unregulated. First Great Western announced increases on some of it’s off peak journeys of 20% last week and others will follow suit, that’s for sure.
Liberal Democrat transport spokesman Norman Baker said:
“While this will provide welcome respite from the normally unrelenting rise of annual fares, it is just a pause, not the end of higher train fares. Passengers shouldn’t be fooled by today’s announcement – we already have the highest rail fares in Europe and the government’s franchise policy will force up unregulated fares even further.”
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