There are a several things that one can associate with the season of goodwill and the dawn of a new year: Christmas trees, the exchanging of presents, the Queen's speech, the NYE party and the inflation busting rail fare increase.

Commuters using trains operated by Southern will continue to pay through the nose to travel like sardines. Some may be priced off the railways altogether.

At a time when the Government's Stern Report predicts catastrophic consequences if urgent action is not taken to reduce carbon emissions; greater use of budget airlines and higher levels of congestion on the roads will only increase pollution.

It is painfully obvious that a railway system that is privately owned is a tragedy for the commuter and the climate.

Shasha Khan Treasurer Sutton and Croydon Green Party Windmill Road Croydon