Britain’s rail misery sums up the Tories’ failed pro-market dogma | Owen Jones
Try being a passenger if you think the privatisation experiment is working – they’re paying for privatisation with fare rises and overcrowding
Behold, the miraculous wonder of the private sector, delivering efficiency, competition, quality and a good deal for the consumer! Britain’s increasingly discredited pro-market dogma is on a collision course with reality, and nowhere more vividly than our shambolic rail system. On the eve of privatisation in 1993, John Major claimed that “a better, cheaper and more effective service for the commuter” beckoned.
Fast forward 25 years, and commuters are facing average fare hikes of 3.4% – with season tickets jumping by 3.6%: the biggest increase since 2013. And this, in a county where workers have suffered the longest squeeze in wages in generations.
Related: Rail fares: unions and Labour condemn ‘staggering’ increase
Related: ‘The rail fare rise means I end up with no money for food’: your best comments today
Source: Guardian Transport
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