"It's not fare" - Campaigners call after 26 per cent hike in rail fares

Commuters returning to work after the festive break faced a rise of around 2.3 per cent and members of Rotherham District Labour Group gathered outside the station’s ticket office lastTuesday.

The party criticised rising prices which have seen the cost of some season tickets soaring by as much as 26 per cent since 2010 - and pledged to bring railways back into public ownership if it was to win the 2020 General Election.

Maltby councillor Richard Price said: “The protest was part of a national campaign by Action for Rail and the Labour Party wanted to outline their policy on rail.

“We want to nationalise the railways and reinvest in them to bring them up to a 21st century standard.

“Personally, I think that nationalisation is the solution because a lot of taxpayers’ money is already going into the railways as we speak, but it’s not going towards improving the service or infrastructure.

“It’s going into the pockets of the rail company bosses. We want to put passengers before profit.”

Figures from National Rail show that the cost of a season ticket from Rotherham, Swinton, Bolton-on-Dearne, Goldthorpe or Thurnscoe to Leeds has risen from £1,940 in 2010 to £2,452 - or 26 per cent.

Cllr Price said around 14 Labour Party members carried out the protest, which he said went very well.

He added: “As trains were pulling in, we spoke to people coming in to catch their train as well.

“The vast majority of people were pretty receptive of our policy, even the idea of nationalisation, which has been a bit controversial in other areas.”

Wentworth and Dearne MP John Healey labelled the fare rises “eye-watering”.

He said: “Fares here have gone up by 26 per cent under the Tories, far outstripping any increase in most people’s pay packets.

“For many people travelling by train isn’t a luxury - it’s how they get to work every day.”

Paul Plummer, chief executive of the Rail Delivery Group which represents train operators and Network Rail, said: “We understand how passengers feel when fares go up, and we know that in some places they haven’t always got the service they pay for. 

“Around 97p in every £1 passengers pay goes back into running and improving services.”

Transport secretary Chris Grayling said: “We are delivering the biggest rail modernisation programme for more than a century, providing more seats and services. We have always fairly balanced the cost of this investment between the taxpayer and the passenger.”