RAIL passengers must wonder what they have done to deserve such shabby treatment. On the day Transport Secretary Stephen Byers admitted that Britain's railways are worse now than when Labour came to power, certain train companies announced above inflation fare increases.

This piles on the gloom for travellers who have endured so much for so long. Recently, the situation has declined still further: in the first two months after Railtrack went into administration, delays increased by 45 per cent.

GNER's price hike - 2.8 per cent - is more modest than some. But train travel is already prohibitively expensive for many families. Higher fares will force more people onto the roads. Furious commuters, meanwhile, have little choice but to pay up.

This is a miserable end to another bad year for Britain's railways.

Updated: 10:16 Friday, December 21, 2001