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British commuters paying ten times more than the French to get to work

BRITISH commuters are paying more than 10 times the price for annual rail passes than their fellow workers in France, according to research by transport union RMT published today.

The shocking figures predate an expected 3.5 per cent fare rise to be confirmed tomorrow that will take effect in January.

A commuter from Ballancourt-sur-Essonne into the French capital Paris pays £268 for an annual ticket — 1 per cent of the average annual salary. A commuter from Cheshunt to London pays £3,200 for a comparable journey, 10 per cent of the average salary.

Commuting from Gravesend to London on the high-speed Javelin service costs £5,828 — 18 per cent of average annual earnings. A German commuter on a high-speed service from Dusseldorf to Cologne pays £2,976 — 8 per cent of average earnings.

Travelling from London to Bristol on a Wednesday morning will cost £99, while a comparable journey to Bologna from Milan only costs a third of that, £34.

In Britain, fares have increased at twice the rate of wages since 2010. Prices have risen by about 32 per cent in nine years, while average weekly earnings have only grown by 16 per cent, using the Retail Price Index measure. Going by the more modest Consumer Price Index measure, fares would have still risen 36 per cent faster than wages.

Rail workers will be protesting at stations around the country tomorrow over the extortionate fares.
 
RMT general secretary Mick Cash said that the situation is “nothing short of a scandal” and called for the railways to be renationalised.

He said: “Meanwhile the rail companies, the majority of whom are foreign state-owned , are using the British transport system as a cash cow to hold down their own domestic fares. That is a nonsense and must be stopped.

“It’s is no wonder that passenger numbers are falling when they are paying more and more for less and less. The rail industry is in crisis and RMT is arguing for a massive cash injection paid for by ending the profiteering on our railway.

“This would mean passengers could enjoy both fare cuts and safe levels of staffing.”

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