Public transport affordability in the UK’s largest cities has been ranked as the worst in Europe in a new report.

UK cities have the least affordable public transport in Europe, according to the report

The Clean Cities Campaign – a European coalition of NGOs and grassroots groups – assessed 36 European cities on how much progress they are making towards achieving net zero mobility by 2030, based on measures ranging from more space for walking and cycling to road safety and policies to phase out polluting cars.

Its report found that London came out bottom of the table, in 36th place, with Manchester only just above it (35th) followed by Birmingham (34th) – on average residents in these cities are being asked to fork out 8-10% of their household budget on monthly travel costs.

By contrast, in Oslo, which came top overall in the report, passengers spend just 2% of their household budget on public transport fares.

With rail fares increasing a further 3.8% this week, along with London tube and bus fares by 4.8%, the report has been dubbed “a wake-up call for the UK government”.

Oliver Lord, UK head of the Clean Cities Campaign, said: “The only way to address our air pollution and climate crisis is to ensure public transport is a cheap, reliable and accessible alternative to the car. Our new report shows that UK cities have the least affordable public transport in Europe, which will inevitably get worse given this government’s decision to increase fares in a cost of living crisis. This government should be helping, not hindering, our cities to play their role in meeting the UK’s clean air and climate goals.”

Commenting on the report, Campaign for Better Transport said central government must take action to make buses and trains affordable, tackling air pollution and traffic congestion in cities, as well as meeting our net zero targets.

Paul Tuohy, chief executive of the transport charity, outlined: “This report makes clear the link between the cost of public transport and efforts to decarbonise transport and must therefore act as a wake-up call for the UK Government. We currently have a situation where it is often cheaper to drive or fly short distances than take the train or the bus, whereas the greenest option should always be the cheapest. We need more affordable public transport to help us achieve the government’s vision where public transport, cycling and walking are the first choice when it comes to transport.”

To improve affordability and help ensure the greenest transport option is always the cheapest, Campaign for Better Transport is calling for the UK government to:

• Introduce Pay-As-You-Go (PAYG) ticketing with daily price capping within towns and cities as soon as possible
• Improve the flexible rail season ticket offer to ensure it provides comparable savings to a full-time one
• Expedite the promised reform of rail fares and ticketing to provide more affordable options and eliminate inconsistencies
• Improve incentives for bus operators to implement contactless payment options and cross-operator ticketing.

Tuohy added: “We are running out of time to tackle the climate crisis. Transport is still the biggest single emitter of carbon in the UK. The Government must do more to get people using public transport by making it more affordable and encouraging its use.”