UK: Rail fares to jump in 2012

[John Ashworth]

Rail fares to jump in 2012 but Crossrail and Mersea Gateway bridge spared

Spending review: rail fares to rise by 5.8% in January but Campaign for Better Transport claims commuters will pay 30% more when cap lifted in 2012

* Dan Milmo, Transport correspondent
* guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 20 October 2010 21.45 BST

Rail passengers face higher than expected fare increases from 2012- equivalent to a 30% rise over the next five years – as the government spared a number of major infrastructure projects, including the £16bn Crossrail scheme.

Philip Hammond, the transport secretary, shielded rail users from the immediate pain of higher fares in January after deferring price rises for one year. This means that the price cap on increases for regulated tickets – such as season tickets and off-peak long-distance trips – will stay at one percentage point above inflation, pegged at the retail prices index figure for July. As a result, fares will rise by 5.8% in January.

However, the fares cap will be lifted from January 2012 in a move that will squeeze commuters in southern England, in particular. Regulated fares will be allowed to rise by 3% above RPI for three years from 2012, helping the government reduce its £5bn annual expenditure on the railways. The Campaign for Better Transport said the move represented a 30% increase in fares by 2015. Under the RPI+1% regime, the increase would have been 20% over the same period.

Stephen Joseph, CBT's executive director, said: "These eye-watering rises are unacceptable at a time when we should be growing the railways in order to tackle congestion on our roads and reduce carbon emissions." According to CBT, the cost of a season ticket from Milton Keynes to London will rise by £1,194 to £5,026 by 2015. A season ticket from Brighton to London will rise by just under £1,000 to £4,071 over the same period. Passenger Focus, the rail user watchdog, said many passengers would find the rises "difficult to stomach".

The Department for Transport (DfT) defended the rises, saying they represented a 10% increase in regulated fares to 2015 once the effects of inflation were included. Bus fares also face increases, with some rural routes under threat, as a 20% cut was announced in the £500m fuel subsidy for bus companies by 2015. However, the reduction is more lenient than many were expecting.

The DfT's capital-spending programme also suffered less stringent cuts than other departments, after George Osborne gave the go-ahead to £10bn worth of investment in projects including the Mersea Gateway bridge project, a revamp for the Tyne and Wear Metro and widening sections of the M1. Other projects fell by the wayside, including a £1bn improvement to the A14 in Suffolk.

Hammond said a focus on long-term projects would benefit the economy. "I am confident we can continue to build a transport system that supports economic growth and reduces carbon," he said.

Overall, the DfT's total spending will be cut by 15%.