It won’t be a happy new year for thousands of commuters in Dartford, who will begin 2012 with the news that the train operator serving the town, SouthEastern is raising fares by an average of 6%. This news is another kick in the teeth for local residents who use stations in Stone, Greenhithe, Swanscombe, Dartford and across North Kent, who are well used to experiencing delays, cancellations and overcrowded trains. For many, rail travel is the only realistic method of travelling to work in London and across Kent. This latest rise, at a time when household incomes are being squeezed, is the worst possible news.
These increases represent another broken promise from the Tory led Coalition Government. Before the election, they promised us fairer fares when it came to power. That claim will ring hollow to commuters who will now see the cost of an annual season ticket from Dartford to London rise to an eye watering £2,124.
Britain already has the highest train fares in Europe. The demand that passengers should pay more and more to travel confirms that these latest rises are a sign that the government is more interested in protecting train operating companies’ vested interests rather than the interests of ordinary passengers.
The current situation is unfair on passengers and must change. The Labour Party today called on the Government to ban train operating companies from raising rail fares above strict limits. This is part of a package being designed to prevent commuters and other hard-pressed passengers being exploited so that fairness and simplicity are restored to rail fares. Labour has also committed to introducing below five initiatives to get a fairer deal for commuters:
1. A single definition of ‘peak’ and ‘off-peak’: to prevent unwitting passengers being given additional charges for having the ‘wrong’ ticket – or train operators stretching ‘peak time’ simply to increase profits.
2. A right to the cheapest ticket: by which the lowest price is clearly advertised and passengers are entitled to a refund if they do not get it.
3. A right to a single price for the same ticket: apply the same fare structure to tickets purchased at train stations and other outlets as those bought online, ending the ‘digital divide’ which raises costs for older passengers in particular.
4. A more flexible way of changing your travel plans: Allow passengers to pay the difference between what they have paid already for an Advance ticket and the appropriate new ticket if they miss their train or need to change their plans, rather than facing a massive additional charge on the train.
5. A right to a discount for a rail replacement bus service: Introduce a replacement bus service discount so your train fare is reduced if your journey does not take place by train and is consequently longer. Planned work to the rail network is often known about at the time of ticket purchases, yet there is no requirement to offer a reduced price despite the often significant change to journey time and increased inconvenience to passengers.
Dartford Labour Party will be campaigning throughout 2012 for these and other measures that will get a fairer deal for commuters in Dartford. Labour would set tough new tests for train companies wishing to retain or apply for franchise – in the same way that we have committed to tackle predatory practices by banks and energy companies. We’ll also be working with commuters and groups such as the Campaign for Better Transport, to ensure that our local train operator SouthEastern maintains services and operates a rail service that puts the interests of passengers, rather than shareholders, first.
Councillor Jonathon Hawkes
Labour Member for Stone Ward, Dartford Borough Council