Saturday 13 August 2022 11:46 PM Train fares set to soar 12 per cent in fresh blow for passengers amid rail ... trends now
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Rail passengers facing another chaotic week of strike action are set to be hit with a record 12 per cent increase in fares, The Mail on Sunday can reveal. Strike action on nine networks held up tens of thousands of football fans, holidaymakers and festival-goers this weekend. Next week, commuters will be hit by strikes on Thursday and Saturday that will cripple the whole rail network. Meanwhile, campaigners have told The Mail on Sunday that annual season tickets will rise by as much as £1,000 next year unless Ministers end a decades-old method for calculating increases using an outdated measure of inflation.
The average rise each year is based on the previous July’s retail price index (RPI), which is due to be announced on Wednesday, and is expected to rise 0.1 percentage points to 11.9 per cent, according to research firm Capital Economics.
This means fares will be allowed to rise by 12 per cent – almost double the previous record increase in 2012. It will see commuters who travel in to London facing an average annual season ticket rise of £550, taking the amount they pay to £5,500. Season tickets for regional commuters would rise by an average £240 to take their fares above £2,000.
Dawn Butler Labour MP, Mick Whelan, Secretary General of ASLEF and Barry Gardiner Labour MP ASLEF picket line outside of Willesden Junction rail station on August 13
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