Rail fares across Greater Manchester are being increased from Sunday

Northern increasing rail fares

Off-Peak Day Return rail fares across Greater Manchester are being increased from Sunday 4 September, and the lack of communication by Northern to passengers has been criticised by independent watchdog Transport Focus.

A spokesman for Transport Focus, said: “No one welcomes a fare increase but it is easier to plan for when changes are communicated clearly and in advance with passengers.

“Northern needs to do more to contact passengers and communicate the changes to build trust and avoid unpleasant surprises at the ticket office.

“We know from our own research that value for money is a key priority for passengers. Just 58 per cent of Northern passengers feel their ticket is good value for money.”

The maximum fare for an Off-Peak ticket will cost £4.90. Currently an Off-Peak Day Return from Littleborough to Manchester Victoria costs £4.40, whereas a ticket from Mills Hill, Middleton costs £3.50.

A Northern spokesman said: “We are bringing the cost of Greater Manchester Off-Peak Returns into line with the cost of similar fares across the rest of our network.

“These fares still represent great value for money for customers travelling outside the peak times.

“These unregulated fares offer us the flexibility to introduce these changes and bring greater consistency in fares across our network.”

Unregulated fares are prices set by the train company, not the government. Approximately half of rail fares are regulated using the Retail Price Index (RPI) to determine increases to fares.

Northern operates as a franchise of Rail North, which works in partnership with the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) to provide rail services across the region.

Rail North had not responded to a request for comment at the time of publication.

Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) declined to comment as the decision to increase the rail fares is not its responsibility.