The expected increase in rail fares in response to the pandemic has become a huge issue for rail travellers in Brighton and Hove.
In what is expected to be one of the largest rises in a decade, the price will be dictated by the Retail Prices Index (RPI) assessment of inflation which was announced as of July 2021 as 3.8% by the Office for National Statistics.
This is a significant increase when compares to the 2.6% rise in March, totalling a 6.4% increase in the space of 4/5 months.
In line with this policy, fares will rise again next year by a predicted 4.8% that will see the largest increase since 2012 and cause significant financial strain for many commuters.
This would mean a £245 price increase that costs travellers £5,353 for an annual season ticket from Brighton to London.
The total prices of many routes would indicate a staggering increase of 50% in fares when compared to the prices in 2012.
Train transportation has often been noted as a slowly growing form of unaffordable transport, with companies offering the same or lesser qualities of service while consistently raising the prices to do so.
Transport campaigner chiefs have called for fares to frozen amid the need to reduce carbon emissions, with the rise in prices likely to convince many commuters to return to the roads to save money.
With towns and cities struggling due to the lack of public presence, there is also considered great need to find ways such as train transport to return people to the high streets and to help put money back into public services.
In a statement from the UK Government’s Department for Transport, they have stated at the current time that no decision has been made on national rail fares and that they are currently considering a variety of options before announcing a decision in due course.
Photo Credit: Andrey Kremkov
