In Question Time in the House of Commons the local MP, who has successfully campaigned for a reduction in the price of a season ticket between both Eastbourne and Seaford and Lewes, criticised the flawed retail prices index-plus policy that is responsible for the rail price hikes.
Mr Baker, who is also the Lib Dem Shadow Transport Secretary, also spoke out against the "stealth railway tax" the Government is forcing franchised train companies, such as Southern, to pay for their franchises, particularly in light of the fact that the Government's financial investment in the railway is set to drop next year.
The Secretary of State, Ruth Kelly MP, replied by saying that moves towards price simplification and an eventual 'price promise' were underway.
Norman Baker says:
"The decision to yet again push up rail fares above the cost of inflation is unacceptable. At a time when the Government should be doing everything it can to get people out of their cars and onto greener forms of transport, they are actually trying to price people off the railway instead.
"We urgently need to make rail travel more attractive by pricing transport according to the damage it does to the environment and accordingly making rail fares better value. This is why I will continue to put pressure on the Government to make sure that rail fares are a genuinely fair deal for my constituents."
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