Train ticket prices will rise by almost 5% next year in another blow to public transport passengers.
Regulated rail fares in England will increase by up to 4.9% from March 3, the Department for Transport has said. Train travellers already faced a 5.9% rise in rail fares in England and Wales this March. The increase was automatically applied to regulated rail fares.
The DfT has now set a cap of 4.9% for increases to most fares regulated by the Government, which include season tickets on most commuter journeys, some off-peak return tickets on long distance routes and flexible tickets for travel around major cities.
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July's RPI measure of inflation, which is traditionally used to determine annual fare rises, was 9.0%.
Transport Secretary Mark Harper said train services are "still losing money" after the pandemic and said the increase "strikes a balance" between railways needing more cash but not dropping the loads on passengers. He added: "Having met our target of halving inflation across the economy, this is a significant intervention by the government to cap the increase in rail fares below last year's rise.
"Changed working patterns after the pandemic mean that our railways are still losing money and require significant subsidies, so this rise strikes a balance to keep our railways running, while not overburdening passengers. We remain committed to supporting the rail sector reform outdated working practices to help put it on a sustainable financial footing."
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