“Fairer pricing is needed” as suburban train fares cost three times as much in South Bristol

Participants argue fairer pricing is needed for suburban train fares, which cost three times as much in South Bristol. Catching a train from the two stations south of the river means passengers have to pay more than triple the price compared to traveling in the rest of the city.

A single from Temple Meads to Clifton Down, for example, costs £1.50 and takes 14 minutes. Meanwhile, a single from Bedminster to Montpelier takes a minute longer but costs £5.

The gap is particularly unfair given that the top 10 most deprived boroughs in Bristol are all south of the river, where there are even fewer bus services. Bristol City Council’s transport policy committee was urged to take action on Thursday 11 July.

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Christina Biggs, from Bristol Rail Campaign, said: “Rail fares are very low on the Severn Beach line and there is a discrepancy between rail fares at Parson Street and Bedminster, which are proportionally much higher. We would like you to work with GWR and Network Rail to think about the fare structure.”

The fare structure is the responsibility of the West of England Combined Authority, with whom the council should work to make any changes to ticket prices. Greens councilor Ed Plowden, chairman of the transport committee, said he would “talk to the people at WECA”.

Cllr Plowden said: “I’m a big believer in trying to see what you can do that’s quick and easy, like looking at rates rather than hard engineering and irreversible changes. If we can make a difference by changing the fare structure, what’s not to like?”

Bus fares were cut in 2022 by the combined authority and passengers now have to pay a maximum of £2 for a single ticket. Fares were capped to encourage more people to travel by bus in a bid to reduce congestion and pollution from private cars and help reduce the cost of living.