Translink price rise must mean improved reliability and customer service

12.00.00am GMT Wed 15th Mar 2006

Alliance Party representative Elena Aceves-Cully has said that people will only accept public transport price rises if reliability and customer service improves in line with the increases.

Mrs Aceves-Cully stated: "Passengers need to see value-for-money, otherwise these price hikes will be seen to be totally unreasonable.

"We simply cannot have a situation where people are paying extra money to stand squashed up on an old train or to wait 30 minutes in rush-hour for a bus. The General Consumer Council has said that punctuality is unacceptable, and price rises are hardly the way to encourage use of public transport. If the service remains so poor, this hike will be a kick in the teeth for people trying or forced to do the environmentally-friendly thing.

"Translink must pledge to make better use of the resources available to it, and we must see a marked improvement in service in return for the extra money put into it by customers. Failure to do this will mean vulnerable people are forced to pay more money for a below-standard service.

"We need to see vast improvements in service, and we need to see the customer put first. Otherwise, Translink will not have many customers left."

ENDS