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Railfuture in the news 2019

Railfuture is frequently quoted by the media in newspapers, transport magazines, online and on radio and television.

Below are some examples of Railfuture being reported during 2019.

Click HERE for more recent examples of Railfuture in the media.


 

2019


29th December - Sunday Express

South Western Railway is expected to receive compensation for loss of income for Christmas engineering works but passengers will not. Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson is quoted: "Passengers will find it hard to understand why rail firms receive compensation for engineering works, but passengers do not for journeys delayed by works."

28th December - Independent

Twelve UK train drivers have been banned from working after failing or refusing to take drug or alcohol tests in the past 18 months. Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson is quoted:

“Any passenger would be rightly concerned if they thought their driver was over the limit, as on a bus or plane, but our safety record in the UK is excellent. The problem is that stopping is still to a large extent down to drivers observing signals rather than automated, and it’s poor that spads are still possible.”

28th December - LBC

The Campaign For Better Transport has produced a report recommending ways forward for the way the railway is run. How does this compare with Railfuture's ideas? LBC interviews Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson. Listen here or download here.

28th December - Sky News

Railfuture director Roger Blake is interviewed about The Campaign For Better Transport's report "The Future Of Rail".

19th December - Modern Railways

Railfuture gets a mention about its plans for a station at the new development of Welborne in Hampshire:

"Railfuture is promoting the provision of a new station at Welborne, to serve a new 6,000-home garden village. The station would be located on the line between Fareham and Eastleigh. ln October Fareham Borough Council granted outline planning permission for the development, subject to a Section 106 agreement which includes safeguarding a site for the station."

16th December - LBC

The introduction of new timetables hasn't gone as well as planned. Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson is interviewed by Nick Ferrari. Listen here or download here.

The station makes a feature of the interview on its website.

14th December - The Times

Rail passengers seem to have learned a secret industry code phrase "Inspector Sands", used when there is a possible emergency situation. Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson said that the code “clearly needed to be changed”.

“If the public are beginning to recognise something that is supposed to be unrecognisable then obviously something is not right,” Mr Williamson said. “The obvious solution would be to change it. But I would have thought that in this day and age there might be some form of communication other than a public announcement system.”

12th December - Reading Chronicle

The new Great Western timetable is welcomed by Railfuture, with Thames Valley branch chairman Richard Stow quoted: "We are at last seeing better rail services following electrification of GWR's main routes and the introduction of bimodal express trains, with increased seat capacity. We are keeping our fingers crossed this superb new timetable works. In the longer term we would like to see four tracks between Didcot and Oxford, and re-doubling of the entire Cotswold line between Oxford and Hanborough. A new station is also needed at Wantage/Grove Science Parkway, and re-opening of the Cowley branch to maximise the benefits to all residents and businesses of the county. GWR’s new timetable is a big step forward in reducing journey times and adding capacity, if the timetable works as planned, and we welcome it. But in the longer term, more investment is still needed to persuade yet more people to switch to rail from the congested roads."

9th December - BBC Breakfast

Nina Smith of Yorkshire branch appears in a report into what policies are needed to make a better railway.

8th December - Huffington Post

In an article examining Labour's proposal to reduce rail fares, Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson is quoted:

“We would naturally prefer investment be made into railways than into roads. After all, with the climate emergency, rail transport is a very environmentally friendly form of transport, much more so than road transport. It seems madness to be building roads and reducing the cost of motoring, which will only increase pollution from road vehicles.”

7th December - The Mirror

The headline reads: "Christmas rail passengers to pay double for services taking up to THREE TIMES longer. Operators are ditching cheap advance tickets while bringing more misery because of engineering work". Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson is quoted: “If the ­service is slower, ­passengers would want to pay lower fares.”

4th December - The Times

With a long series of strikes affecting passengers on South Western Railway, there are calls for refunds for season ticket holders. Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson is quoted: “You can see the case for season ticket holders receiving a lump sum. They bought their ticket almost a year ago on the promise of a service being available all year round and it isn’t.”

3rd December - talkRADIO again!

Following on from the previous day's interview where the topic of fuel duty came up, the station takes the unprecedented decision to invite back Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson for a longer discussion on the subject. Listen here or download here.

A clip of the interview is posted on talkRADIO's twitter account.

2nd December - talkRADIO again

Ongoing strikes on South Western and Labour's proposal for fare reductions are in the news, so for the second time in the day Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson is called upon to comment. Listen here or download here.

2nd December - talkRADIO

The rail industry has announced its fares for next year, with an average rise of 2.7%. Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson gives Railfuture's view on James Max's business breakfast. Listen here or download here.

23rd November - LBC

The Conservatives are proposing a change in the law to limit strikes in the rail industry. Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson is invited to comment. Listen here or download here.

22nd November - BBC News website

TransPennine Express has launched a new £500m fleet of trains. Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson welcomed the news, saying "Overcrowding has been a problem across the network and we welcome any new investment and increased capacity."

22nd November - talkRADIO

South Western Railway is still threatened with lengthy strikes throughout December, and the Labour manifesto includes some proposals for rail. What is the reaction of Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson? Listen here or download here.

21st November - BBC Radio London

There's public concern about the level of overcrowding on the Tube following a number of recent incidents. Railfuture director Roger Blake appears on the drive time show to give his perspective. Listen here or download here.

17th November - Stroud News & Journal

Under the title "This is the real age of the train", director of Business West Gloucestershire Ian Mean gives a write up to Railfuture Severnside's campaign meeting to discuss the re-opening of the Stonehouse(Bristol Road) station, which was closed post the Beeching axe.

"It would be easy to dismiss this sort of rail campaign as the focus of some ageing rail anoraks steeped in the past. I believe this would be very shortsighted - especially in Stroud and the Five Valleys where train connection to Bristol is abysmal" he writes.

14th November - BBC News website

Troubles continue on the Northern franchise with over half of all services running late. A spokesman for Railfuture is quoted: "What makes matters worse is when Northern cancels service it is often on the routes where there is only one train an hour, which means you are even later"

14th November - BBC Midlands Today

Railfuture West Midlands spokesman Colin Major appears on the BBC Midlands Today evening news from Kidderminster station to talk about what Railfuture means by a "bigger better railway", and what we want from the political parties.



12th November - BBC Radio Gloucestershire

Severnside branch is launching a campaign to reopen the second station in Stonehouse, which would allow direct services to Bristol. The story is picked up by BBC Radio Gloucestershire, who feature it during their morning news bulletins. Listen here or download here.

11th November - Telegraph

Record numbers of people are taking trains over planes to get from London to Scotland as a "flight shaming" movement urges travellers to cut their carbon footprint.

"Bruce Williamson, from the campaign group Railfuture, told The Telegraph: "People are feeling more guilty about flying generally, and, of course, the London to Scotland trains are electric, and therefore clean and green.

"It's a very environmentally-friendly way of travelling."

Mr Williamson said the likes of Extinction Rebellion and Thunberg - who sailed from Britain to New York in an emissions-free yacht earlier this year - have helped to trigger a change in travel habits. "

5th November - Railway Technology

In August the Rail Delivery Group announced it would no longer sell Eurail passes, but after heavy criticism, it backed down the next day. Railfuture chairman Chris Page contributes to the analysis of the decision:

“Interrail and Eurail are managed by the same organisation. But Interrail is for European citizens, and Eurail is for people from outside Europe coming to visit in Europe. As the two schemes present similar deals – including coverage, pass duration and prices – it soon emerged that the two could be merged into one solution for all. Eurail Group wanted to combine the passes, but that meant that BritRail – which is for citizens from outside the UK, visiting Britain – effectively would get undercut”

5th November - talkRADIO

The RMT is calling 27 days of strikes on South Western in the ongoing dispute over the role of guards. Eamonn Holmes talks to Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson. Listen here or download here.

The next day it's the turn of Julia Hartley-Brewer on the talkRADIO breakfast show. Listen here or download here.

3rd November - Metro

Engineering works over the Christmas period prompt the usual press headlines about "travel chaos". Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson is quoted: "It’s impossible to do works without disrupting and inconveniencing passengers, who don’t like bus replacement services. The railways have suffered decades of under-investment, so we’re now playing catch-up. Works have got to be done some time, so lines and stations can cope with higher passenger levels."

The same story also appears in The Mirror

31st October - BBC Radio Humberside

It is no longer possible to book seats on TransPennine Express because of overcrowding and drunkenness. Yorkshire branch chair Nina Smith is interviewed on the drive time programme. Listen here or download here.

21st October - BBC Radio Derby

MEMRAP campaigns for re-instatement of 12 miles of rail between Rowsley and Buxton, and is supported by Railfuture. Campaign co-founder Stephen Chaytow appears on the breakfast show and in numerous news bulletins to talk about the campaign, and even manages to give Railfuture a plug. Listen here or download here.

21st October - talkRADIO

There are calls for compensation for passengers still forced to travel on the much-unloved Pacers. Railfuture director Roger Blake is interviewed on talkRADIO to discuss. Listen here or download here.

18th October - talkRADIO

The Northern franchise looks set to be renationalised. What are the implications for the rest of the network and the franchising model? Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson appears on James Max's early business programme to discuss. Listen here or download here.

13th October - City A.M.

The government looks set to scrap the rail franchising model. Although the details are yet to emerge, Railfuture offers a cautious welcome, with spokesman Bruce Williamson quoted as saying: “We have for some time been an advocate for a change to the franchise system, because it’s been clear for a long time that it’s not working. We’ve been an advocate for a concession model for some time, but we’ll just have to wait and see what Boris Johnson comes out with. The devil is in the detail.”

9th October - Shropshire Star

The paper reports that Railfuture has organised a public meeting where passengers can grill representatives of Transport for Wales and West Midlands Rail Executive. Dr Stephen Wright, chairman of West Midlands branch, is quoted: “We have chosen Shrewsbury as our venue as it is the railway hub for a large cross-border area of The Marches and we are concerned that proposals for future services do not reflect the needs of the local communities."

26th September - CPRE members journal

Thames Valley branch secretary Andrew McCallum, who is also vice chariman of the Betjeman Society, has a letter published: "Sir John would, I am sure, have been alarmed by the prospect of the Ox-Cam Expressway and the harm it will bring to swathes of countryside. I am equally sure he would have approved of the scheme to reopen the old 'Varsity Line' between Oxford and Cambridge"

21st September - BBC Radio Bristol

Stephen Brookes MBE, the chair of Railfuture's annual conference in Bristol, appears on the breakfast show to give a preview of the conference and discuss some of the issues on the agenda. Listen here or download here.

19th September - BBC News website

New tram trains for the South Wales Metro will not have toilets, creating problems for some passengers. Railfuture Wales chairman Peter Kingsbury is quoted: "We're happy there will be improvements at stations but expecting people to travel without toilets for an hour is concerning. Experience shows station lavatories can be readily vandalised, as many stations will continue not to have staff. The answer to this in the past is to lock the toilets."

22nd August - talkRADIO

Some train operating companies have failed to implement a rule change which would result in lower penalty fares. Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson comments. Listen here or download here.

15th August - talkRADIO

Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson appears on James Max's Business Breakfast to discuss rail fare rises and the award of the WCML franchise to First/Trenitalia. Listen here or download here.

14th August - Rail fare increases

July's inflation figures are released, setting the level of January's fare increases, and Railfuture is heard on the breakfast shows of LBC (listen here) and talkRADIO (listen here), BBC Radio Bristol (listen here), and in the news bulletins of Forth 1 (listen here) and BBC Radio Five Live (listen here).

Railfuture director Roger Blake is interviewed by LBC radio and ITV for Good Morning Britain

Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson is quoted on the front page of The Guardian “It might be that we’ve now reached the point where we cannot simply put fares up and expect passengers to take the hit. They will just give up and refuse to pay. They will either find another job or another form of transport.”

Similar quotes appear in the Times, Independent, Metro, Scotsman, Daily Mail, Daily Record and many more titles.

The Financial Times said: "Bruce Williamson, spokesperson for RailFuture (sic), a campaign group, said the government has insisted on using RPI as a benchmark for rail fares. “They love RPI because it is higher than CPI,” he said, adding that continuing to use RPI is “not fair and not sustainable”."

The Telegraph says: "Meanwhile, the campaign group Railfuture warned that faced with ever-increasing fares passengers may soon reach the point where “they will just give up and refuse to pay”. "

14th August - BBC News website

"Welsh trains: 'No answer' down the track to overcrowding" is the story, as the new rail operator for Wales hasn't had much immediate impact on the quality of rail services. "Railfuture, which campaigns for better rail services, said TfW was "attempting to offer a service but with the rolling stock that they have available it's very difficult for them to offer a service at the moment that is 100% reliable"."

14th August - BBC Radio Oxford

Richard Stow, chairman of Thames Valley branch, appears on the breakfast show along with local councillor Yvonne Constance to talk about the possibility of line and station reopenings in Oxfordshlre. Listen here or download here.

He later appears on the BBC One regional evening news.

14th August - ITN

Ann Hindley of Lincolnshire branch appears on the 6.30 and 10pm bulletins talking about fare rises and Pacers.

9th August - talkRADIO

In the light of the Rail Delivery Group's climbdown over its decision to pull out of Interrail, Railfuture's Chris Fribbins is invited onto Julia Hartley-Brewer's breakfast show to discuss. Listen here or download here.

8th August - talkRADIO

Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson is invited to comment on the Rail Delivery Group's decision to pull out of the Interrail scheme. Within a few hours, the decision is reversed. Coincidence? Listen here or download here.

8th August - The Herald

Heavy rainfall in many parts of Scotland has caused major disruption to the rail network. Railfuture gets a mention: "It has raised concerns from Railfuture, the better rail services campaign group that the issues illustrated "the lack of resilience of the rail network" and how the nation is able to cope with climate change."

5th August - The Mirror

"Train fat cats receive £1.2 billion in share payouts as rail network crumbles" is the headline, as the paper runs a story critical of the rolling stock companies' profits. Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson is extensively quoted, although out of context to support the thrust of the story. He said:

“This is what you get for privatisation and involving private companies who want to make a profit. It plays badly to the public who perceive rail travel as expensive. Clearly we would always ask for investment in the railways which have suffered from under-investment for decades. It is overpopulated with outdated rolling stock and track. Passengers might look at this and not see the money going into investment. It fuels the argument for nationalisation of the railways in the eye of the passenger. I can understand why passengers seeing these sorts of figures would feel like that. It prompts the question of whether there is effective competition in the rolling stock market.”

22nd July - talkRADIO

£100 million of delay repay compensation is going unclaimed. What does Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson think should be done to improve this? Listen here or download here.

17th July - Witney Gazette

Richard Stow, chair of Thames Valley branch, has a letter published critical of West Oxfordshire district council's decision not to press for restoration of an Oxford to Witney rail link. He writes "Rail is 21st century technology, and forward looking politicians of any hue had better start to recognise that."

1st July - talkRADIO

Network Rail is considering buying out the part of British Steel which makes rails. Is this a good idea? Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson is invited on to the early business programme to discuss. Listen here or download here.

20th June - talkRADIO

Strikes have hit South Western this week in the ongoing dispute over the role of guards on trains. Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson appears on Julia Harley-Brewer's breakfast show to review some issues which are very familiar. Listen here or download here.

11th June - talkRADIO

Virgin is proposing to launch an open access service to compete with the West Coast main line. Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson is interviewed on the breakfast show. Listen here or download here.

4th June - North East Times

The article highlights the risk of the North East region being left out of future rail developments. Dennis Fancett of North East branch is quoted: “We strongly support the call from the Northern Powerhouse MPs for rail investment for the North to be given the same priority as HS2 .... we are concerned that even Northern Powerhouse Rail tends to concentrate predominantly on the Leeds-Manchester corridor and overlooks the North East,”

31st May - ITV Yorkshire

Nina Smith of Yorkshire branch was interviewed on the local news programme Calendar. Both the Greater Manchester and Merseyside mayors have demanded that Arriva be stripped of the Northern rail franchise. Nina argued that the blame for Northern's problems lay mostly with the Department for Transport.

20th May - talkRADIO

Today's rush hour will be the first test of the new timetable which was introduced yesterday. Has the industry learned the lessons from last year's fiasco? And will HS2 be scrapped, as Boris Johnson, a known opponent of HS2, becomes the frontrunner to take over from Theresa May? Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson is interviewed. Listen here or download here.

18th May - BBC Somerset

On the day of GWR's last scheduled HST service from Paddington to the West Country, breakfast show host Simon Parkin talks to Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson, who also appears in the news bulletins. Listen here or download here.

6th May - Northamptonshire Telegraph

A bench has been unveiled at Corby station in memory of Railfuture member Jim Wade, who campaigned for the station to be re-opened. Steve Jones, secretary of the East Midlands branch, is quoted: “Jim was a founding member of the Corby rail campaign in the early 1980s and was a long standing member of Railfuture. The opening of the new station in 2009 was the culmination of many years of campaigning and might never have happened without Jim’s passion and dedication."

6th May - talkRADIO

Newspaper reports claim that hundreds of drivers are on the payroll for Crossrail, even though the project has been repeatedly delayed and completion is still two years away. Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson is interviewed. Listen here or download here. talkRADIO posted a clip of the interview on their Twitter account.

2nd May - Eastern Daily Press

The headline is: "No reservations on new trains to capital for up to six months". The introduction of new trains means that it will not be possible to reserve a seat during the transition period, as the new and old trains have different seating reservation systems.

"Chris Burton from Rail Future (sic), which campaigns for a better passenger and freight network, said: “It's a recipe for confusion between now and the future.” And he added that he thought it would “annoy” people."

24th April - talkRADIO

Virgin wants to make its services reservation-only, so that no-one stands. Is this workable? Eamonn Holmes interviews Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson. Listen here or download here.

18th April - talkRADIO

Easter engineering works include the complete closure of Euston and more. Presenter Mike Graham gives the rail industry a hard time and Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson speaks for the defence. Listen here or download here.

11th April - The Star

The awarding of the new East Midlands franchise to Abellio has led Clive Betts MP to question whether they can deliver improvements. Andrew Dyson, secretary of Yorkshire branch, is quoted: “We knew there were going to be new trains, as this was specified as part of the bidding process, but it’s welcome this is actually happening. We expected the existing franchise would be extended by another year, so the fact they’re able to get on with it and order the trains means hopefully we will see them in service sooner than we would have otherwise."

Railfuture East Midlands chairwoman Ariadne Tampion gets quoted too: “The existing franchisee is definitely one of the better ones, when you look at passengers’ experiences with the likes of Northern and Southern, but it has some blind spots. One particular bugbear has been the idea that everybody wants to go to London and all the other stations are just a source, which can make it hard to go for a night out in other cities because the last train home is too early.”

10th April - BBC Radio Lincolnshire

Abellio will be the new franchisee for the East Midlands. Lincolnshire branch chair David Harby gives his assessment of what improvements we can expect to see. Listen here or download here.

10th April - LBC London News

Virgin/Stagecoach has been disqualified from bidding for any new franchises, so the Virgin brand will disappear from the railways in a year's time. What does this mean for passengers? Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson has some of the answers. Listen here or download here.

10th April - Northamptonshire Telegraph

"Memorial bench for dedicated Corby rail campaigner" is the headline, the campaigner being Jim Wade, who died in March last year aged 75.

Steve Jones, secretary of the East Midlands branch, is quoted: “Jim had a lifelong interest in railways. On his first day at Rockingham Road Infants School in 1947 he played truant to watch the trains from the nearby railway bridge. He did the same on his second day but was apprehended and as he put it “was brought into compliance with the education system!” "

10th April - Telegraph

Paper tickets are heading for the way out as nine in ten rail journeys will be available via smartphone tickets by the end of the month, according to the paper.

"Previously campaign group Railfuture has warned that elderly people, who do not have smartphones and will still buy tickets in stations, face paying higher fares than those who have adopted the new technology. It is feared that the number of paper ticket users dwindle they could be forced to pay a premium to cover the overheads associated with buying paper tickets, such as the cost of running ticket machines, printing and paying station staff."

1st April - The i

There are varying success rates in passengers' claims for delay compensation, with the paper describing it as "a postcode lottery". Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson is quoted: “We need a simple set of rules and procedures that are common across train companies.”

The story is also picked up by The Scotsman and the Halifax Courier: "Nina Smith, of the Yorkshire branch of the campaign group Railfuture, said numbers seeking compensation remained low because many passengers were unaware of their rights or believed it was not worth their time to claim."

19th March - BBC Somerset

The Go-op cooperative is proposing a new open access service from Somerset to Nuneaton. Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson is heard giving a cautious welcome to these proposals. Listen here or download here.

17th March - Daily Mail

"Fury as passengers miss out on £20million payout for Easter rail shutdowns as train firms rake in compensation for engineering works that will shut down major routes" fumes the paper, going on to quote Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson: "Passengers will be frustrated and feel they have a case for discounted fares."

8th March - Cambridge News

This article provides an update on the Wisbech rail campaign. "Railfuture, who spearheaded the campaign, believes strongly the reinstatement of the railway and town centre station, which closed to passengers in 1968, would help regenerate the town and improve residents' quality of life."

It quotes Chris Burton of East Anglia branch: "We have been lobbying for the reinstatement of the railway for 20 years or more. We leafleted the area and there was a great deal of support for it."But now we need someone in Government to say 'this is the plan.' We are just waiting to see what transport secretary Chris Grayling is going to do. We have met him and everyone has spoken to him. It's still very much on the cards - it's not blue sky."

27th February - talkRADIO

A report by a group of MPs says that lessons have not been learned from last year's timetable fiasco and that this year might be just as bad. Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson is asked how badly the railways are run. Listen here or download here.

The interview is featured in a news page on the talkRADIO website.

25th February - BBC Somerset

A local authority feasibility study will consider the case for reinstating trains to Shepton Mallet. Is this a goer? Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson appears on the breakfast show. Listen here or download here.

18th February - BBC Radio Bristol

The Rail Delivery Group wants to overhaul the ticketing system to make it easier for passengers to get the best deals. BBC Radio Bristol invite Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson onto Claire Cavanagh's afternoon show to say what it might mean for train travellers locally, including those of GWR, who declined to appear on the programme. Listen here or download here.

10th February - The Sun

The tabloid comments on the disparity between payments made by Network Rail to train operators for delays, and the amount paid to passengers. "SNOW UNFARE Fury as train firms get £180million compensation for snow and other disruption — but pass on just £81m to users" is the headline. Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson is quoted: “There’s the important question of what proportion of this money goes to passengers.”

25th January - talkRADIO

A new report claims that rail travel is causing passengers to suffer from stress. Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson is invited onto the morning show to put a more positive spin on the state of the nation's railways. Listen here or download here

21st January - Modern Railways

Steve Jones of East Midlands branch has a letter published in the magazine, supporting the idea of a new service between Liverpool and Leicester. He writes; "Such a service would be a major advance in addressing the present limited connectivity between the East Midlands and the North West, something that Railfuture has been seeking to address for many years."

18th January - North West Evening Mail

"A local MP and heritage railway company have won a prestigious award for their DIY train service on the Lakes Line. " reads the article which picks up on our press release. It pictures Railfuture director Roger Blake and MP Tim Farron alongside Pat Marshall, director of West Coast railways, receiving Railfuture's RUG award for the "Lakelander" service which was put on last summer when Northern's services collapsed.

The story is also covered on the news websites Cumbria Crack, RailBusinessDaily and on the ITV news website.

5th January - Yorkshire Evening Post

Nina Smith, chair of Yorkshire branch, writes an opinion piece on the recent fare increases. She says "We need both affordable fares and a much better and integrated public transport system, including a tram system for Leeds and Bradford. That's a win-win, including for those who have to use the roads as there would be less congestion."

2nd January - Fare rises

This year's 3.1% hike generates much media coverage, with Railfuture being involved in a lot of it.

Railfuture director Roger Blake appears on Sky News
Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson appears on:
BBC Radio Five Live Listen here or download here,
BBC Radio Kent Listen here or download here,
BBC Radio Bristol Listen here or download here,
talkRADIO Listen here or download here and
Jack FM Oxfordshire Listen here or download here.

A clip from the talkRADIO interview is posted on their Twitter account.

Our comment about "a kick in the wallet" is quoted in the headlines of BBC news bulletins, including the 6pm news on BBC1 and Radio 4.

In the press, Railfuture is quoted in the Mirror, Daily Mail, Telegraph, Scotsman, Daily Star, iNews and Metro as well as many local papers and the websites of Sky, ITV and BBC news

1st January - Edinburgh Evening News

"Anger at great train ‘rip-off’ as punctuality falls and passengers face fares hike"

The paper picks up on our press release, quoting Railfuture spokesman Bruce Williamson in a story about tomorrow's rail fare increase: “After a terrible year of timetable chaos, passengers are being rewarded with yet another kick in the wallet.”




Click HERE for previous examples of Railfuture in the media.



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