To the delight of our lefty chums on here (TJ, Effin Scaley, BigButDimmerBloke to name but a few), I have to say privatising the public transport network has been an unmitigated disaster!
Where I live, we have allowed our council to yellow line almost the whole of our town now and as a result, TFL have seen an opportunity to fleece local commuters by increasing the parking charges by a whopping 49% (from £3.70 a day to £5.50). This is on top of the increase in fare prices! If you go to Tesco, you get free parking if you buy products instore, so why should a season ticket holder pay to park? I am old enough to remember when staion car parking was free.
The line i'm on lost a good ten miles of functioning track almost 20 years ago because that bit at the extremities of the network wasn't making enough money. Even now, people drive a few stops down the track to get cheaper fares and cheaper parking. If the fares from the end of the line hadn't been punitively high, the line would have had a lot more passengers. So everyone is driving part of their journey which totally defeats the object of having public transport - STUPID!
Taking a train anywhere usually costs more than driving, despite the continued reaffirmation by the "greens" that tell us trains are more eco friendly. It's a lot cheaper if you know how to play the system, like booking well in advance, or booking tow separate tickets with a stop/start part way between your destination. It's mind bogglingly confusing and patently unfair. Ultimately, people vote with their feet and this is why our roads are clogged.
I can fly to Spain and back for less than I can buy a train ticket to Cornwall. So don't tell me a train is a green option!
The whole network has become a run down overpriced mess int ehpast tow decades, but it's operators make a good living by fleecing commuters who have no alternative means of transport.
Transport infrastructure is a vital enabler for economic growth and ongoing prosperity and should therefore be under full public control, not subject to market forces and shareholder appeasement.
Yes, nationalise it!
