The Government must act now on unfair rail fare rises before train travel becomes a luxury that only a few in the city can afford, said Brighton and Hove Greens today.

Brighton Pavilion MP Caroline Lucas joined local Green election candidates Christopher Hawtree, who will stand in Hove, and Davy Jones, who will seek to represent Brighton Kemptown, at Brighton Station to talk to commuters about the rocketing cost of train travel.

The Greens are calling for an end to private ownership of the railways, which has seen huge increases in the cost of travel and cost to the taxpayer with little real improvement in services or efficiency.

Rail fares in the UK are now among the highest in Europe, with tickets prices having increased 26% since the start of the recession in 2008 – yet local people are still facing ongoing problems with service provision from Southern Rail and First Capital Connect.

Caroline Lucas MP said:

"Commuters in Brighton and Hove are being badly let down by a toxic combination of rapidly rising fares and poor services.

"For those rail passengers on lower salaries, the incessant price hikes, together with other rising living costs like food and rent, are pushing them further towards desperation.

"With the cost of train travel having risen by 17% in real terms since privatisation in 1994 – compared to a 7% drop in the cost of motoring – the truth is that today’s privatised system is ripping off passengers, harming the economy and failing the environment.

"And people are rightly angry that so many trains coming in and out of the city continue to be overcrowded and unreliable, as well as overpriced.

"The Greens want to bring the railways back into public ownership, which could save over £1 billion a year of taxpayers’ money – allowing the Government to deliver lower fares and a better quality of service.”

ENDS

Notes for Editors

1) Figures from the June 2012 report Rebuilding Rail, by the Transport for Quality of Life group.