The operators are bringing the industry into disrepute with their ?single-minded? pursuit of profits, the all-party Commons Transport Committee said.

It criticised the Government?s ?complacency? for failing to ensure value for money for the £87 million a week of taxpayers? money thrown into the rail network. Passengers were being ?held to ransom? by companies that were trying to see how much they could get away with.

The report said that the privatised rail industry had had more than a decade to get fares and ticketing right, and it had proved incapable of doing so. Ministers promised to respond fully to the findings.

Some passengers on West of England rail routes could face fare rises of up to 11 per cent from next month.

Some first-class season tickets on First Great Western routes could go up by between 5.9 per cent and 11 per cent from June 11, and there will be increases on some standard-class seasons.

Some cheap-day and saver fares could rise by 3.5 per cent, although other cheap-day and saver fares will be reduced.

According to a leaked document, the company says: ?Some fares are going up, some are going down and some remain unchanged. We expect the changes will encourage more people to travel with us, especially off-peak, and so our revenue will increase.?

Commenting on the report last night Chris Grayling, the Shadow Transport Secretary, accused the Government of trying to price people off the railways. ?In the old days under British Rail, if the trains started getting too full, they would put up the fares to try and stop people travelling.

?Today we have big problems of overcrowding and it?s clear that the Government and rail companies are pushing up fares quite sharply. It all looks to me like they are trying the same trick all over again.?

But the Association of Train Operating Companies said that the report was completely over the top. George Muir, its director-general, said: ?This report calls for cutting rail fares but without having the courage to admit the huge increase in subsidy this would mean.

?If the transport committee wants more subsidy of fares, then it should say so, and promote an honest debate on the subject.?

Derek Twigg, the Rail Minister, said there were more than one billion passenger journeys made last year, the most for more than 40 years. That showed that the railways were an attractive choice for many people. ?We want to price people on to the railway by making sure attractive prices are available. There are some excellent- value fares, but it is true that the system can be complicated for passengers, and this report highlights important issues.

?This is a challenge and a responsibility for train operators. There is more that can be done to simplify the system and we are urging them to do so. We will, of course, consider this report and respond fully to it.?

Bob Crow, the general secretary of the Rail Maritime and Transport union, said the report was an indictment of the private sector?s inability to operate the railways as a public service. He said: ?The private train operators cannot see beyond the interests of their shareholders, and operate pricing policies aimed at maximising revenues and profits. The private sector has proved itself as unwilling or incapable of operating a fair fares policy as it is of putting adequate staff on stations.?

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Rail firms holding passengers to ransom, say MPs

Daily Telegraph: 20/05/2006
By David Millward, Transport Correspondent

Passengers are being "held to ransom" by train operators who have proved incapable of offering reasonable fares, an all-party committee of MPs said yesterday.

In a withering report, the transport select committee rounded on the industry and the Government for their handling of the railways over the past decade.

"Train operating companies have exploited the complacency of the Government," the MPs said. "The industry has demonstrated beyond doubt that it can neither be relied upon to produce a simple, coherent and passenger-friendly structure of fares nor is it capable of maintaining reasonable ticket prices."

According to the MPs, fares charged to passengers who turn up to buy tickets on the day were often "exorbitant" and those who needed some flexibility in their travel arrangements were often penalised.

In addition, not only were tickets often expensive, but the system surrounding an array of concessions was confusing, with terms and conditions varying from one operator to another. The committee said the industry had been given more than a decade to sort out fares and ticketing but had proved incapable of doing so.

As a result neither passengers nor the taxpayer were getting value for money. "The situation is simply unacceptable," the MPs said.

"The Government must now pick up the pieces and set about creating a coherent policy for the railways which also incorporates better regulation of fares and conditions of travel."

The MPs called on the Government to put passengers' needs ahead of the demands of train operators', who enjoyed a near monopoly, for revenue. They also called on the Government to stiffen the powers of the rail regulator to curb excessive fares.

Ministers took almost as severe a battering as the rail companies, with the committee criticising the Government's approach to subsidies. While the committee accepted that passengers could not enjoy the same level of support as their continental counterparts, the MPs warned that the Government's determination to minimise subsidy put at risk the long term viability of rail services.

Meanwhile Virgin defended its record, despite being singled out by the committee over its policy of charging more per mile on its London to Manchester route than on the London to Glasgow service. A spokesman said many of its fares had been reduced and that the company had seen a 17 per cent increase in passenger numbers last year.

While the industry sought to justify itself in face of the MPs' criticism, it emerged that one operator, First Great Western, is planning to impose rises of up to 11 per cent on its West of England routes next month.

The report drew condemnation of the Government and the industry from the Conservatives and the main rail union last night.

Chris Grayling, the Tories' transport spokesman, accused ministers of trying to price passengers off the railways. "Under British Rail, if the trains started getting too full they would put up the fares to try to stop people travelling," he said. "Today we have big problems of overcrowding and it's clear that the Government and rail companies are pushing up fares quite sharply."

RMT, the largest rail union was equally critical. "The committee's report is an indictment of the private sector's inability to operate the railways as a public service," Bob Crow, the general secretary, said. "The private train operators cannot see beyond the interests of their shareholders, and operate pricing policies aimed simply at maximising revenues and profits.

"Rail fares policy ought to be harnessed to encourage a modal shift from car to train and, above all, that means making them affordable.

"Our own submission to the committee showed how privatisation has left standard fares and travel cards in Britain vastly more expensive than elsewhere in Europe, and that at holiday times it is all but impossible for families to get a cheap fare deal. The private sector has proved itself as unwilling or incapable of operating a fair fares policy as it is of putting adequate staff on stations."

Anthony Smith, the chief executive of Passenger Focus, said many rail travellers did not feel they were getting value for money. "The system is too complicated so train companies will have to work really hard to simplify the way they sell tickets."