There’s a glimmer of hope for regular commuters with the announcement that rail fare rises are to be delayed.

The Government says it will delay the increase in prices from the traditional start of January until March next year.

This makes sense, not least because of the drop in passenger numbers.

It goes some way to meeting the points I argued in my blog post in August about the annual rise in ticket prices. I suggested then that the increase should happen in June rather than January each year.

Whereas the delay in the introduction of the higher fares is welcome, there’s no such good news about the rigid formula for increasing the cost of travel.

Ministers are sticking to the RPI link which means regulated fares will rise by 2.6% next Spring. The pandemic has led to increased public money for the railways with taxpayers effectively keeping them going until confidence returns.

But higher fares once again mean those who are still working and who rely on public transport at peak times will continue to have to pay for the privilege.