Service does not deserve fare increase

This morning, my train (from Woy Woy to St Leonards) was 20 minutes late.

When it did eventually come, it was ridiculously full.

Astonishingly, the driver 'forgot' to stop at Berowra, and only realised his mistake when someone called him using the intercom on the train. Thank goodness we were in a Tangara and not one of the older trains.

After realising he had forgotten to stop at Berowra, he stopped the train at Mt Kuringai to let off those people who needed to get off at Berowra.

Not surprisingly, those passengers were quite irate.

By the time the train reached Turramurra, there were so many people on it that quite a few school students were unable to board.

Undoubtedly, they were late for school.

I remember (from personal experience) quite clearly how unsympathetic schools can be when your excuse for being late is "I couldn't fit on the train".

It sounds ridiculous, but unfortunately, it is a regular occurrence in Sydney.

I am offended that commuters are going to be made to pay increased train fares.

I don't feel that the service warrants it.

If the quality of the service improved, I may feel that the fare hike was worth it, but given the rise in fares last year and the fact that nothing improved after it, I have become a cynical commuter.

Please stop the rise in fares.

Rebecca Fenton