Fare hikes are needed to change the rail system – but there are better ways to do it

Analysis: If implemented properly, price increases on certain peak journeys will mean cuts on others and a kinder deal for taxpayers, says Simon Calder

(AFP)

The prime minister and the shadow chancellor share a curious constituency boundary. The parliamentary frontier between Uxbridge and South Ruislip and Hayes and Harlington follows Brunel’s Great Western rail line. That is appropriate because the only other thing Boris Johnson and John McDonnell have in common is the recurring political nightmare of what to do about Britain’s railways – with regulated fares set to rise by 2.8 per cent next year.

The essence of the problem: tens of millions of UK citizens who never go near a train contribute a large slab of the £6.4bn annual subsidy to run the nation’s rail industry. And the system is largely devoted to facilitating the lifestyle choices of relatively well-off commuters in southeast England.

There are sound socio-economic and environmental reasons for bankrolling rail journeys to work. It keeps cars off the roads and increases productivity. Partly through the labours of commuters shuttling from the Home Counties, the capital powers the UK economy and generates a huge tax surplus for the Treasury. Some of that cash goes to helping connect remote and less-wealthy parts of Britain.