Rail fares across England and Wales will soar this weekend amid a series of train strikes.
Initially, train prices would have increased based on July's retail price index (RPI) which stood at 12.3 per cent in 2022. However prices will now not be going up by that much due to intervention from the government.
The Department for Transport (DfT) announced that it would cap the rise on Sunday, March 5 at 5.9 per cent. However, this cap will not be a blanket cover for all journeys as train companies decide on the prices for unregulated journeys.
When announcing the cap, Transport Secretary Mark Harper said: "This is the biggest-ever Government intervention in rail fares. I’m capping the rise well below inflation to help reduce the impact on passengers.
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“It has been a difficult year and the impact of inflation is being felt across the UK economy. We do not want to add to the problem.
“This is a fair balance between the passengers who use our trains and the taxpayers who help pay for them.”
The DfT confirmed that the cap will only be implemented "for this year only". Despite the limit on train fare increases, the move is still being criticised.
Shadow transport secretary Louise Haigh said: “This savage fare hike will be a sick joke for millions reliant on crumbling services. People up and down this country are paying the price for 12 years of Tory failure.”
David Sidebottom, director at watchdog Transport Focus, said: “No-one likes prices going up. In our latest research, less than half of passengers think the railway currently performs well on delivering value for money tickets. After months of unreliable services and strike disruption, it’s clear that too many passengers are not getting a value for money service.
“Capping fares below inflation and the delay until March is welcome and will go some way to easing the pain, but the need for reform of fares and ticketing in the longer-term must not be forgotten.”
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