Rail fare rise unacceptable say Greens
It’s too soon to ask rail passengers to pay a fare rise say the Scottish Greens, especially for a ScotRail service that “rarely impresses”.
Green MSP John Finnie says the increase in regulated rail fares from January 2018 announced today is another example of why privatised railways are “an enormous failed experiment”.
John Finnie MSP, the Scottish Greens’ transport spokesperson, said:
“There has been a recent improvement in rail passenger satisfaction, but it wasn’t that long ago that rail passengers, particularly commuters, in Scotland had to put up with continually delayed, cancelled and overcrowded trains as part of their journey, so it seems a bit too soon to ask them to pay an increased fare for a service that rarely impresses.
“Privatised railways are an enormous failed experiment and we saw the East Coast service turned around under public ownership. Rail users in Scotland will undoubtedly be looking to the immediate future where they’ll expect the Scottish Government to take over the ScotRail franchise or pave the way for nationalisation. Greens have long campaigned for rail services in Scotland to be put back in public hands and this fare hike is further proof of why we urgently need that.”