Train companies are due for a bumper payday as their prices are expected to rise by 8% in 2012 Escalating costs of train tickets have angered UK residents who are dependent on the not so reliable train companies to get them to work. Payday loans could be one way of trying to find the money for the rising cost of travel, a particularly when you are considering using money to finance the cost of a season ticket. Indeed, using a season ticket calculator here at Loan Advances we found the average cost of travel to work for members of our staff (from Manchester to Chester) who choose to use the train tickets would cost a staggering £2280 per year.

Payday loans typically go up to a maximum of £1000, so it would not be advisable to use one for this – however, citing the same rail journey of Chester to Manchester, were you to decide to opt for a 3 month pass this would cost £656.70. Applying for a payday loan for this amount would be realistic with most payday loans online providers charging £25 per £100 borrowed, would set you back around £150 in interest. Compare this to charges levied by credit card companies, or overdraft fee’s and there could be a saving to be made.

But why are the train companies hiking their prices up once again? The simple answer is that they are increasing, in line with inflation, plus 3% – as inflation is predicted to be 5%, an additional 3% would take it to 8% with season tickets being hardest hit with price rises (being the predominant ticket type for the working population who travel to work on trains). It may be worth looking at alternative methods of transport to work if you feel the cost of travelling by rail is too much. Use season ticket calculators to work out the cost, plus the potential additional 8% to forecast what your potential travel costs may be.