Edinburgh train fares on the rise as campaign group warns about 'another decade of misery'

Train fares in Edinburgh are on the rise with campaigners warning about "another decade of misery" for rail passengers.

Annual season tickets between the Scottish capital and Glasgow will now cost £4200 after an increase of £116. Day trips have also been affected with an off-peak return to Dundee now costing an extra 50p – taking the price to £29.40.

Overall, fares are increasing by an average of 2.7 per cent across the country, and Bruce Williamson of pressure group Railfuture said: "How on Earth is the Government going to meet its climate commitments by pricing people off environmentally friendly trains and on to our polluted and congested roads?"

He reckons the increases will make for "another decade of misery for rail passengers".

According to Network Rail date, only 65 per cent of trains arrived at the scheduled station stops within one minute of the timetable in the year up to 7 December.

Transport focus director David Sidebottom said: "After a year of pretty poor performance in some areas, passengers just want a consistent day-to-day service they can rely on and a better chance of getting a seat."

He wants passengers to claim compensation for every eligible delay in order to "offset the cost of the fare rises".

Robert Nisbet, director of nations and regions for industry body the Rail Delivery Group, said: "We know that no-one wants to pay more to travel, and rail companies have, for the third year in a row, held average fare increases below inflation while continuing to deliver investment in new trains and extra services that will improve journeys for customers."

He added that 2020 will see 1,000 extra weekly services and 1,000 more carriages added to Britain's rail fleet.

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