Ahead of tomorrow’s release of July’s RPI figures, and the subsequent expected rail fare announcement, James Price, Campaign Manager at the TaxPayers’ Alliance, said:
“It would be wrong to announce any kind of rail fares freeze, as it would hurt both rail users as well as all taxpayers who subsidise rail in the UK, whether or not they use trains. Taxpayers would be subsidising wealthier rail users to the tune of more than £1 billion over a parliament if fares were frozen and rail users would suffer a worse experience from more crowded trains and more delays. Instead, the trade union-caused bloated wage bill should be addressed, and hated, pointless and wildly expensive projects like HS2 should be scrapped, freeing up tens of billions for more worthwhile projects in the regions.
“We should remember that most people in this country rely on their car to get to work, do the weekly shop or pick up the kids from school - it's time we focused on smaller, less glamourous but much more productive infrastructure projects beyond the M25 that benefit commuters and deliver value for taxpayers.”