FARES on South West Trains services are to rise by an average of 1.5 per cent (7p per average single journey) from January 2.

This is below the July Retail Price Index inflation rate of 1.9 per cent which is used by the Government to set all regulated fares, including season tickets, and is also below the average national increase for 2017 which stands at 2.3 per cent.

A South West Trains spokesman: “This means that South West Trains customers will see fares on average reducing in real terms.”

For those travelling on the Alton to London Waterloo line it will mean an increase of £72 on an annual Travelcard season ticket (including London Zones 1-6) to £4,876 while a monthly Travelcard season ticket will rise to £469.70 (£389 to Waterloo only).

According to a South West Trains spokesman, while unregulated fares face no cap, the average 1.5 per cent increase on fares applies to both regulated and non-regulated fares.

It will mean that a day return will increase by 50p to £28.90 – the current day return costs £28.40, reduced to £22.70 with an off-peak rail card.

Rail passengers travelling with South West Trains can now check new ticket prices for 2017 by visiting National Rail Enquiries at nationalrail.co.uk.

A South West Trains statement read: “As well as paying for the running of the day-to-day rail network, fares are helping government to support the biggest investment in railway since Victorian times.”

South West Trains is currently investing £50m in a range of customer improvements, including the introduction of 100 new customer ambassadors to provide a more personalised service at stations; the roll out of 91 interactive video ticket machines linked to a new dedicated 24/7 customer contact centre; 1,400 extra car parking spaces, and 1,400 more cycle spaces at stations across the network.

In Alton, the station car park is to undergo a facelift, to include a revised layout, as part of the Alton station forecourt improvement scheme.

The project is being financed in part by a £150,000 contribution from Waitrose, allocated as a condition of planning, with additional funding expected via developer contributions from the Chandos Lodge development, and from Hampshire County Council.

While not, it appears, contributing to this particular initiative, South West Trains is said to be working in partnership with Network Rail, on a programme of work to deliver some of the biggest improvements on the network in decades which are expected to boost peak-time capacity by 30 percent by May 2018. The plans include a £210m fleet of new trains to be introduced from 2017 and major improvements to London Waterloo, Europe’s busiest station.

Christian Roth, managing director of South West Trains, said: “We have worked hard to offer the best value travel for our customers. The changes in January will mean fares for South West Trains customers will on average reduce in real terms.

“As well as helping to fund the biggest national investment in the railways since Victorian times through increased payments to Government, the money from fares is also helping to drive many real improvements for customers across our network. This includes new trains and major work to improve journeys to and from London Waterloo.”