No guarantee of improvements, despite fare rises - Maines

7.35.00pm GMT Fri 12th Dec 2003

Chris Maines has spoken out over inflation busting rail fare rises

Commenting on reports that rail passengers in the travelling on South Eastern Trains will face a 4.1% increase in fares in the New Year, Chris Maines, leader of the Liberal Democrats on Bromley Council said "Our rail travellers are being forced to pay today, for a promise of improvements tomorrow."

"Rail fares have been held down in the past because of poor service. Now

commuters are going to have to pay for bad management and years of

under-investment, with no guarantees of a better service."

Britain's railways are already the most expensive in Europe, with research

by the Liberal Democrats revealing that £10 will only take passengers 42

miles on the UK railway system.

Chris Maines said:

"A tenner goes further on most European railways. You can travel more than

three times as far in Spain, and over four times as far in Italy for the

same money. In the Czech Republic you can travel over 7 times as far on the

railway as you can in the UK. Yet with these fare rises the gap simply looks

like it will widen further still.

"The question that the Government and South Eastern Trains must answer is,

how many years will we see inflation-busting fare rises before our railways

are safe, reliable and affordable?"