Great Western Coffee Shop

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Campaigners handed out cards to passengers at railway stations across the South West

Protesters angry at increasing rail fares and planned cuts to services and staff have held demonstrations at stations throughout the South West.

The action was planned by the TUC's Action for Rail campaign. Transport unions say rail fares have increased by more than 26% - almost three times as fast as wages - over the last four years.

First Great Western said none of its fares will rise by more than the government's guidelines.

Action for Rail said the Association of Train Operating Companies has announced fares will be going up by an average of 3.9% in 2013.

The campaigners handed out Christmas cards to passengers on stations at Bristol Temple Meads, Parkston, Stroud and Swindon.

The cards state as well as fare rises and staff cuts in the new year, train travellers can "look forward" to a 2013 "packed full of cancelled trains, service cuts, and ticket office closures - all at a time when the train companies are making huge profits". Commuters were urged to send the cards to their local MPs to tell them of their concerns over fare rises.

"This is the tenth year running now of above inflation rises, and our research shows rail fares continue to outstrip wages," said Matt Dykes, rail policy officer at the TUC.

Dan Panes of First Great Western said the protest was about the government's fares' policy. He said First Great Western was not getting the money because the fare formula means the government pays less but the rail passenger pays more. "We've taken on 200 extra staff this last year and have no plans to close a station," he added.

Regular rail passenger and member of the Friends of Bristol Suburban Railways group Julie Boston said: "I'm very supportive of the demonstrations. Our fares are the highest in Europe but the operators are in an impossible situation - they have to make profits for their shareholders. What we need is to take over train operations to get them into public ownership."

Rail unions protest in Cardiff and Swansea at fare rise

Trade unions have held protests in Cardiff and Swansea against the rising costs of rail travel and planned cuts.

The TUC Action for Rail protests were staged at 50 railway stations across the UK. Unions say fares have risen three times as much as wages over the last four years.

The Association of Train Operating Companies says it is the government that decides average season ticket increases, and not train companies.

The protests came after the Association of Train Operating Companies announced new-above inflation fare levels for next year. The campaign's supporters handed out Christmas cards with a "seasonal message" from the train companies.

The message claims that along with fare rises in the new year, commuters will have a 2013 "packed full of cancelled trains, staff cuts and ticket office closures" while the train companies are "making huge profits".

The union point to research by claiming rail privatisation is subsidised to the tune of ^1.2bn a year, which would bring an 18% cut in rail fares if it was eliminated.

Rob Jenks, of transport and travel union TSSA, said: "We want to point out the dramatic rise in rail fares, a 30% increase in rail fares, compared to the average increase in people's wages of 11.9%. So you can see there's a huge gap between what people can afford to pay and what people are having to pay.

"It's about fares, it's also about all the cuts the industry is facing as the government tries to allegedly balance the books but without taking the opportunity to actually look at what public ownership would bring and all the savings that would make by cutting out profit and various other things."

The protests were held at Cathays, Cardiff Central, and Queen Street stations in Cardiff and Swansea station.

The Association of Train Operating Companies has said that it is the government "not train companies that decides how much season tickets should rise on average each year".

"Successive governments have instructed train companies every year to increase these regulated fares on average by more than inflation," a spokesman said last week.