To the barricades Comrades!
This stonking piece of polemic from the RMT...
RAIL UNION RMT announced today it is holding a Budget “Day of Action” over Government plans to axe thousands of jobs, close ticket offices, jack up fares and give the train operating companies “gold plated” franchises as it implements the McNulty Rail Review recommendations.
The announcement comes on the day that the train operators, through their front organisation ATOC, admitted that they are planning to use an increase in rail demand as an excuse for jacking up fares and pumping up their fat profits.
RMT will be joined by sister rail unions and commuters in action at train stations across thec ountry on 21st March and will be specifically targeting South West Trains where a deep, commercial alliance as a forerunner for a private takeover of infra-structure kicks in on 1st April.
RMT General Secretary Bob Crow said: “Today we have again seen the true face of greed of the private train operators as they rub their hands at the prospect of using the surge in rail demand as an excuse to ramp up fairs and to screw the travelling public for every penny of profit that they can extract from the network.
“On budget day, RMT and our supporters will be stepping up the fight for a railway free from profiteering and exploitation and in support of the principle of transport run under public ownership as a public service.
“If the train operators get their way they will seize control of infra-structure and drag us back to the lethal days of Railtrack that led us to Hatfield and Potters Bar. They will also throw the guards off the trains, close ticket offices and de-staff stations turning the whole railway system into a criminal’s paradise where yobbos, vandals and muggers have a free run.”
UPDATE: This from Steve Strong...
Oooh goody!
I see that Crow Bar says that TOCs plan to "to ramp up fairs".
Will there be carousels and dodgems and stuff?
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