MSE News: Rail fares could rise by 11.2% as inflation figures revealed

Former_MSE_Helen

"Hard-hit rail commuters face further misery, as it's been revealed some season tickets could go up by 11.2% next year ..."

Read the full story:
Rail fares could rise by 11.2% as inflation figures revealed

zerog

There's something really wrong when legislation includes a default assumption that prices MUST rise every year.

But of course if you own your house then you think something's wrong when the price DOESN'T rise every year, don't you?

TheSandman

Now's the time to get on your bike!

I hate to come across preaching like this but having decided after the increases in the last two years to take to two wheels I think everyone should at least try it.

To allay some fears;

It won't take as long as you think. A bicycle, especially a road bike, gets across the ground much faster than you think. Measure the distance you travel with the trip meter next time you go to work, 10 miles is probably 35 minutes on a bike and few people commute much more than that.

You won't arrive sweaty. In reality at 8am it's not warm outside, indeed for around 8 months of the year it's pretty damn cold and when you add in the wind chill effect you have to cycle furiously to break a sweat. When I commute to work I actually wear a hooded top to stop myself getting too cold!

Being seen isn't a problem. If you have to use B roads to get to work then a hi-vis vest and a good light on the back is more than enough even on winter nights.

You don't get soaked. It doesn't rain as often as you think, problem is Britain has a lack of sunlight so the ground and pavement stay wet and puddled for hours after giving the impression it's wet all the time. A set of proper mud guards (that wrap round half the wheel and only sit a few mm off the tyre) ensures you stay dry.

You will get fit enough to do it. Maybe start off cycling the route at the weekend to get the time down, then try it just once a week, then twice a week progressing gently and within weeks you'll be doing it five days without getting worn out.


To add -
Panniers can hold a change of clothes and laptop/briefcase/lunchbox easily.
Every study proves that exercise makes you happy and relieves stress.
You can save cash on the gym membership.
You can help stop us drowning from melting ice caps
The train is still there to use when you're late or too tired.
You also save petrol for short trips to the bank & post office etc



It is expensive to get setup with the bike and all the kit but the cycle to work scheme lets you pay for a bike out of your GROSS salary and picking bits of kit up second hand make it a lot cheaper. It's an investment as well, after a year a railcard is worthless but the bike and kit is still worth money.


Me? I started cycling just over a year ago, being reasonably fit I jumped straight in cycling the 28 mile round trip 5 days a week. The £400 outlay was recouped with profit in the 4 months of summer and through autumn, winter and spring I only got the train when it was bucketing down or howling a gale. Initially it did feel a faff but I got into the habit and the regular exercise does make you feel better.

Save cash and save the planet - we only have one

KTF

Nice idea if you work locally and normally drive but if you live on the south coast and work in London then thats quite a commute on the bike each way

mileslondoner

While I agree with most of the points covered by The Sandman and I cycle to work myself it is worth noting that:

- there are extra costs of maintenance related to cycling (from a puncture that can happen at any time to a regular check of everything that costs around 50 pounds)

- bicycle theft is a big issue in most of big cities

- taking bicycle on public transport is rarely an option in rush hour (in case it rains or you get injured)

I cycle 10 miles each way to work in London and it takes me around 45 min - 60 min (mostly due to traffic and red lights that I do not ignore). I cannot really imagine cycling to zone 1 in London from anywhere outside the zones system and these are the type of places people commute from on the train. Cycling to/from the station should be doable.

oldvicar

What a strange place to bury news about inflation.

Inflation increases affect important things as well as the price of train tickets. Things like the price of water.

Still, the rise is less than in the same article from 16 August 2011.

Kushan

I wish I could cycle to work, but my commute is an hour on the train each way, so I dread to think what that'd be on a bike.

Still, currently my travel costs to work are about £160 per month and that's with a disabled persons' discount. I know that compared to a car that's not a lot but it still stings a bit. A raise of 10% will cost me an extra £190 a year.
When you factor in that heating, food, rent and so on are going up while wages and benefits are either stagnant or cut, it's no wonder we're in a recession with a struggling economy.

Catriona_P

This is a huge problem for my other half, who has a 2hr train journey (each way) for his job every day. Cycling isn't an option at those distances and jobs closer to home havn't materialised.

At the moment we're looking at the very real possibility of him having to give up his job and try to change sectors in order to get a job closer to home. This could be another nail in that coffin so we'll be watching developments closely.

How on earth is the economy ever supposed to recover when hard-working people are being hit with costs like this?

alanrowell

TheSandman wrote: »

You won't arrive sweaty. In reality at 8am it's not warm outside, indeed for around 8 months of the year it's pretty damn cold and when you add in the wind chill effect you have to cycle furiously to break a sweat.

Depends on your body type, some people sweat profusely from small amounts of exercise even if fit. I'd only cycle to work if you can shower when you get there.

ashleyriot

TheSandman wrote: »

No need to repeat

I echo and endorse everything The Sandman says - I've being doing it for three years now, have saved over £2,000 in petrol (and that's after biking costs) and have cycled over 9,000 miles.

Yeah, I've got to work a bit wet a few times but then I jump in the shower and get even wetter, lol.

I'm an all weather cyclist myself but even if you did just Spring through Autumn you'd save so much money and have so much free exercise. Plus the benefit to the environment cannot be forgotten.

TheSandman

All fair points.

I think London is an exception as a lot of, if not most, workers have to commute by rail for an hour or more. The post was primarily aimed at people who live too far for a direct bus route but still within the 20 mile radius where cycling gets a bit challenging and I know there's a lot people in that situation.

Catriona, at the risk of going off topic, the economy is screwed. We spend around £720BN a year £120BN is borrowed (that's nearly £14 million borrowed every hour). Domestic demand is falling, trading partners are going down the pan, taxes are too high, three clueless and impotent parties. Big sigh...........