Canterbury Commuters Worry After Train Fares Increase

Train fares are set to increase in January, making it the highest they’ve ever been in the last five years.

The fares will increase by a total of 3.4% which is 1.2% more than fares in 2015.

Due to such a large increase in train fares, Canterbury residents and those travelling to Canterbury are already beginning to worry about the costs.

Amy Thrussell, a Canterbury resident and everyday commuter, says:

“Commuting is efficient but the prices of train tickets now days are so expensive, it is hard to afford trains anyway let alone having another increase in train fare prices.

“It’s hard because i have to commute to university in Medway nearly every day so it’s not like i have a choice”

The amount of commuters in the UK has doubled over the last 20 years and the average amount of train journeys a day adds up to a staggering 4.7 million a day.

The National Rail services are expensive to upkeep and for every £1 spent, 97p goes back into the running the services.

Gavin Pepper, Track acces planner, says:

“I think the reason that causes the rail hike is due to the amount of commuters that user trains as a way of commuting to work which requires more trains to meet demand.

“That increase in demand requires the rail industry to accommodate.

“They need to maintain the infrastructure to meet the high demand of trains and also to maintain new signalling systems to help the everyday running of trains and ensure they run to schedule”