Train fair?

All the papers are reporting the government-funded Passenger Focus research saying that Brits pay more for train travel than anywhere else in Europe, which I have to admit doesn’t come as a great surprise given the way the railways work. I’m just about to put my hand in my pocket and fork out another £1K+ for the pleasure of partaking in the joys of South West Trains for another year, which could be seen as as either confidence or bravado given the state of the City nowadays.

If you’re anything like me then it’s the simple pleasures in life that count, like getting a seat on a train, but over the last year I’ve had to give up on the 7.30, then the 7.12 and since New Year I’ve abandoned even the 6.56 in favour of the 6.41 just so that I can get a seat without having to resort to the jockeying for position on the platform which accompanies overcrowding. Many of my former train-mates on the 7.12 and 6.56 now also turn up for the 6.41 so I suspect I’m not alone in that sentiment and anything that’ll give leverage to those asking for a decent service at a reasonable price is welcome.