Transport Price Hikes hit

Article from YourMedway on Tory transport failure on bus and rail. More to come from other publications am sure.

Fare Fail: Send your message today?!

This blog is supporting the FareFail campaign against the Conservative-led government which has let down the commuter and rail user.

Despite all the hot air prior to May 2010 we have seen eye-watering increases in fares on both Medway trains and buses. The Tories have simply let the commuter down because they have cut the direct transport grants; they are therefore not only charging the fare user more, but commuters get less investment. It is unfair.

Medway Labour has been consistently leading on opposing fare increases with a campaign event only in mid-December at Chatham bus and train stations. Labour have been speaking with residents who are sick and tired of the lame excuses on transport; sick of botched £10m Tory bus station and the eye-watering bus fares, sick of the train fares swindle which they were promised would not happen by Tory Councillors and PPCs prior to May 2010.

Medway Labour have also been working closely with Maria Eagle MP and the Labour transport team on developing new policies for train users so that we can once again champion the cause of commuters. The party that stood up against the reckless privatisation in the 1990s which destroyed the railways and left a fragmented and dangerous legacy - You can never trust the Tories on rail.

This blog has also exposed the utter hypocrisy of Conservative MPs who are happy to spend taxpayers money subsidising their own rail and car travel at your expense. These same Tory MPs are now trying to change the IPSA rules so that you cant hold them to account on transport

You can send a message to the multi-millionaire and out-of-touch cabinet of Conservatives who may indeed have chaffeur driven and subsidised cars in government, but can not and should not ignore the rest of the public who are expected to get to out and work.

In 2012 our overpriced rail fares have been hiked again.

Our trains are already the most expensive in Europe.In three years time ticket prices will be 24% more expensive than now, yet passengers continue to be stuck with overcrowded, unreliable trains, with less staff on trains and less staff at stations.This Tory-led Government is taking us further and further away from the value for money train service we all need.

Are you sick of paying hundreds of pounds extra each year to get to work?

If so back the FareFail campaign and send a message to the out-of-touch Tory elite in government.

Bus & Train Fare Rises

Despite the focus today on the rise in train fares and the comments in the local press we could be forgiven for thinking that they were the only one's to suffer from fares.

You would be wrong...

Conservative MP's seemingly happy to talk about train fares in today's Messenger have totally airbrushed the thousands who use buses across the area.

It annoys me enough that I have been working with bus users and residents on sourcing the real impacts of cuts on local bus services. Working with the Tory-led Council who seem happy to ignore the cuts in government grants and the fact that local authorities should be open and transparent about why local services should be getting more expensive has been tricky. The responses have seemed evasive to accepting any responsibility on bus usage and there is a total lack of clarity on the manner in which reductions in subsidy are consulted upon, in advance, with local representatives.

Instead, it seems Councillor's are only spoken with after decisions have been made.

It is simply living in denial to claim that bus users in Medway are not suffering a worse deal. Not only have they had to spend a fortune on the over-budget bus station but they are now seeing real cuts to services and fare rises, in an area with an already poor reputation for value for money.

There is no doubt that many feel burnt by the bus station fiasco which will cost twice the original budget estimate of £5m. The news today that the Pentagon bus station car park will cost £160,000 just adds to the woe.

So why do bus users get ignored? Partly this is because the media tend to be focused on the more middle-class 'train users' who have more political influence but also because bus users tend to have lower overall fares and we assume that many will only make small journeys and so the increases will be less significant.

Of course the cumulative damage of rising bus fares on poorer communities is significant. Cuts to bus services and rises in fares mean that low-income families with no car are at risk of falling into poverty.

We know buses are vital, connecting people with town centres, jobs, colleges, shopping, family and friends, and when bus services are cut, people’s lives are badly affected

Indeed, the Tory-led government’s budget allocation for Medway transport was significantly cut by the government from £3.5m per year to £1.5m per year.

As a result Medway has seen

• Single fares up by 10p or 20p. e.g. Single fare on the 181 from Street End Road to Weeds Wood will go from £2.20 to £2.40 (9% increase)
• Inner Medway day ticket up from £4.00 to £4.20 (5%)
• Inner Medway week ticket up from £16 to £17 (6%)
• Inner Medway 4-week ticket up from £47 to £50 (6%)
• Inner Medway annual ticket up from £470 to £500 (6%)
• Medway day ticket up from £5.20 to £5.50 (6%)
• Medway week ticket up from £21 to £22 (5%)
• Medway 4-week ticket up from £68 to £72 (6%)
• Medway annual ticket up from £670 to £720 (7%)

The popular ‘Happy Max’ deal and evening fares will no longer be available.

The Labour opposition in government has called time on the private-sector operations which have left services fragmented and disjointed. It is now time, according to the Shadow Transport Secretary, to look at options to bring some services in-house and for residents to be given a proper consultation on services and fares. I agree.

Labour Councillor's will continue to stand up for our residents who use buses and trains. We believe that with this government fare isn't fair.