Happy new rail fare rise

Debbie Abrahams, MP for Oldham East and Saddleworth, has been campaigning at Greenfield Station (2/1/18) against a 32% rise in rail fares since the Conservatives came to power in 2010 – the morning commuters faced the steepest hike in 5 yrs – up to 3.6%.

The number of rail passengers using Greenfield station has risen from 314,512 in 2014-15 to 338,694 in 2015-16; an increase of 7.69% according to figures released by the Office of Rail and Road (ORR).

Debbie, who has made lobbying for fairer trans-Pennine train fares as one of her top ten constituency priorities, told Saddleworth News: “Passengers using Greenfield Station, and across the country, have faced unacceptably high fare rises since 2010 under this Tory government.

“Fares have risen by 32% since the Tories came to power.

“On top of this, in the last couple of years, passenger numbers at Greenfield have increased by nearly 8%.

“Labour would bring our railways into public ownership meaning fares would be capped; services would be better and more reliable; and there would be investment in our railways.

“I have regular contact from constituents raising concerns about the low number of trains running each hour, the frequent overcrowding, the quality of the rolling stock and the ever increasing cost of tickets.

“In addition, this year commuters will also see a 44 minute wait between peak services to and from Greenfield Station due to revised timetables and a re-routing to Manchester Piccadilly (instead of Manchester Victoria and Salford) impacting many work journeys.

“I am contacted on a daily basis about train delays or cancellations of trains without any notice. It is just not good enough.

“It is unacceptable given that Greenfield has seen the largest percentage increase in usage of any station between Manchester, Huddersfield and Leeds that the Government continues to drag its feet on improving access.

“Rail passengers were always told that higher fares were necessary to fund investment, but vital projects have been delayed by years and essential maintenance works have been put on hold.

“The truth is that our heavily fragmented railways mean that it takes years longer and costs much than it should to deliver basic improvements. The railways need reforms that could be implemented if public ownership was extended to passenger services, but the Tories are persisting with a failed model for purely ideological reasons.”

Author: Jude Gidney - Editor

If you would like to share an interesting story, achievement, photo or something you just want to happily shout about please send it in an email to hello@saddleworthlife.com We'd ❤ to hear from you!!