Great train robbery over fares 


A TUC analysis reveals that rail franchise shareholders have taken £1.2 billion in dividends in the last five years.


The payments to shareholders are being made despite rail firms receiving major subsidies from taxpayers. Fullfact.org has calculated that the privatised rail industry benefits from around £5 billion of government support each year. 


The TUC says that working people who rely on trains to get to work are getting a raw deal. In the decade since 2009, fares for commuters have risen by 46%. But the average weekly wage has only risen 23% over the same period. 


Around half of all fares are regulated, and include season tickets on most commuter journeys, some off-peak return tickets on long distance journeys and anytime tickets around major cities.  


TUC general secretary Frances O’Grady said: “If you thought the Great Train Robbery was audacious, it’s peanuts compared to the Great Privatisation Scam. 


“Rail shareholders take the same amount the robbers took every three months. The rail firms take billions of pounds from taxpayers too. But working people must still commute on overcrowded and unreliable services. 


“We can’t go on being fleeced like this. Let’s use our votes to fix the railways and put them back in public hands.” 


www.tuc.org.uk/news/rail-passengers-suffer-their-own-great-train-robbery-every-3-months-tuc