Great Western Coffee Shop

Why do people keep throwing their arms up in shock every time a fare rise occurs?

Yes - fares are too high, and we all want to spend less.

But I am never shocked or surprised.

FACE IT: while overcrowding goes on getting worse and worse, and inflation gets worse - prices are going to go up!

And this is before we factor in the fact that the gov/taxpayer are paying less.

Prices won't stop rising until overcrowding stops. Esp on TOCs like XC, who have had to pick up the pieces from Virgin's Voyager catastrophe.

You mention inflation is increasing? I got the impression it was fairly static and moving towards deflation.

January's fare rises are based on what was happening in July. Just like next April's old age pensions rises will reflect September just gone. The predicted levelling off or deflation should be seen in Jan 2010's rises.

Paul

Fair point, Paul.

Ironically, the two highest figures for the Retail Price Index, in the past few months, were July (used in determining rail fare rises from January 2009) and September (determining the basis of State benefit rises, etc., from April 2009).  If any other monthly figures had been used, it would have been quite different:

Year   Jan   Feb   Mar   Apr   May   Jun   Jul   Aug   Sep   Oct   Nov   Dec
2007   4.2   4.6    4.8   4.5    4.3    4.4   3.8   4.1   3.9    4.2   4.3    4.0
2008   4.1   4.1    3.8   4.2    4.3    4.6   5.0   4.8   5.0    4.2 

_{I'll go and take my anorak off, now ...  ::)}

A fare point (no pun intended) D/M, but for the last few years inflation has been increasing.

Hopefully, we will get deflation and fare increases may start to slow down (although it will only make overcrowding worse!).