December 20, 2011 10.11 am This story is over 160 months old

East Midlands Trains ticket prices rise 5.7%

Price hike: Cost of train tickets in Lincoln will rise in the new year by almost 6% on certain services.

East Midlands Trains has confirmed it will be hiking the cost of travel on its trains from January 2, 2012.

The average ticket on the operator’s services, including most Lincoln trains, will rise by around 5.7%.

The rise in fees is to cover the cost of maintaining the services, from refurbishing trains to improving stations under East Midlands Trains’ control.

While the price for a journey will vary, East Midlands Trains said that the average price will only rise by 72p.

New fares for services can be found on the East Midlands Trains website from December 20.

Services affected will be trains from Lincoln Central to places such as Newark, Leicester via Nottingham, Peterborough, and Skegness to name a few.

Car parking will also be affected by the price changes, however certain tariffs have been frozen or in some cases reduced — evening parking will now cost £2.

East Midlands Trains said that the 5.7% price rise is lower than the national average rise in ticket costs at 5.9%.

Managing Director of East Midlands Trains, David Horne said: “Money raised through fares helps to pay for better train services and improved facilities at stations.

“At East Midlands Trains, we are investing over £40 million to deliver improvements to every aspect of our passengers journeys, including refurbished trains and better station facilities such as refurbished toilets and waiting rooms.

“Fares also reflect the government’s long-standing approach to sustaining investment in the railways by reducing the contribution from taxpayers and increasing the share paid for by passengers.

“In the longer-term, the rail industry is working together to continue cutting costs as a way of helping to limit future fare rises and offer better value for money for taxpayers.”

However, the change in ticket prices has also led to positive changes for certain varieties of tickets.

Tickets pre-booked online will be discounted by £1, and the cost of the cheapest advance one-way ticket will remain unchanged.

For further insight into the national change in fares, visit the National Rail’s Rail Fares Explained website.

Source: East Midlands Trains