Rising rail fares are putting people off using the railways
31 July 2025
Reacting to the ‘rail fares index 2025’, which shows that rail fares across Great Britain increased by 5.1% in 2025 compared with a 3.2% increase in the Retail Prices Index, Ben Plowden, Chief Executive of Campaign for Better Transport, said:
“Rising rail fares are putting people off using the railways and making rail travel unaffordable. The Government must make fares and ticketing reforms a priority under Great British Railways to help tackle inflation-busting fare rises and make rail travel more affordable for more people.”
ENDS
For further information please contact the press office on 07984 773 468 (calls only no texts) or communications@bettertransport.org.uk.
Notes to Editors
The rail fares index 2025 can be read on the ORR website.
YouGov data shows that fares affordability is a key factor behind the public’s support in the process of rail reform: while two-thirds of Britons (66%) support nationalisation in principle, this falls to only 6% if rail fares were to continue to increase.
Research commissioned by Campaign for Better Transport found that 71 per cent of people said cheaper fares would make them more likely to travel by train. More details: Campaign for Better Transport commissioned Yonder to carry out an online omnibus survey as part of its report, Fix Fares for Good. The fieldwork was undertaken between 17-19 January 2025 with 1,102 respondents across Great Britain. When asked ‘How much more likely would the following measures make you to travel by rail?’, 41% of people said ‘cheaper fares in general’ would make them ‘significantly’ more likely to travel by rail; 30% said ‘somewhat more likely’; 22% said ‘it wouldn’t make a difference’; and 7% said ‘don’t know’.
Campaign for Better Transport operates in England and Wales. Campaign for Better Transport’s vision is for all communities to have access to high quality, sustainable transport that meets their needs, improves quality of life and protects the environment. Campaign for Better Transport Charitable Trust is a registered charity (1101929).
