COMMUTERS in Farnham will be hit once again by above-inflation increases to rail fares from the new year, after months of delays, cancellations and strike action.

Rail fares are set to rise on average by 3.1 per cent in January, with regulated fares, which include most season tickets, set to go up by 3.2 per cent. This rise is based on the Retail Prices Index (RPI), but calls have been made for the lower Consumer Price Index (CPI) to be used.

The increase means that for a season-ticket holder travelling from Farnham to London terminals, an annual ticket will cost them a whopping £128.77 more next year, rising from £4,024 to £4,152.77.

Chief executive of the Rail Delivery Group, Paul Plummer, said: “Nobody wants to pay more to travel, especially those who experienced significant disruption earlier this year.

“Money from fares is underpinning the improvements to the railway that passengers want and which ultimately help boost the wider economy. That means more seats, extra services and better connections right across the country.”

But Alton Line Users’ Association (ALUA) denounced “unfair rail fare increases” and called for the CPI to be used as the measure of inflation as it would lead to smaller fare increases.

The group believes “passengers deserve to be treated fairly, particularly after a year of continuous problems on South Western Railway services”.

Anthony Smith, chief executive of the independent watchdog Transport Focus, said: “Many passengers, still reeling from summer timetable chaos and frustrated by ‘autumn’ disruption, won’t believe fares are going up again!

“Until day-to-day reliability returns – with fewer significant delays and cancellations – passenger trust won’t begin to recover.

“Passengers now pour over £10billion a year into the rail industry alongside significant government investment, so the rail industry cannot be short of funding. When will this translate into a more reliable railway and better value for money for passengers?”

ALUA does not believe passengers suffering from the current service should be paying more for possible future improvements and agrees with Labour shadow secretary of state for transport, Andy McDonald, who said: “This has been a painful year for rail passengers.

“With little prospect of improvements in 2019l, this latest above-inflation fares rise will be felt even more deeply than usual. These increases show a government and rail industry out of touch with passenger concerns.”

Labour MP Lilian Greenwood, chairman of the Transport Select Committee, added 3.1 per cent was the “largest increase we’ve seen since January 2013”.

“About one in five users of the railway suffered weeks of chaotic services after the badly-botched timetable change in May and for some passengers, the pain persists. Overall performance is at its lowest ebb for several years, and on a downward trend,” she said.

“A fares system in which there is such a disconnect between quality of service and price is quite clearly broken.”