RAIL commuters will see the cost of annual season tickets between Farnham and the capital rise by £44 in the new year.

The one per cent rise, which will come into effect on January 2, is the lowest in six years and comes after the Rail Delivery Group (RDG), which represents train operators and Network Rail, capped the average increase in regulated fares across the South West Trains network at 1.1 per cent.

It means a season ticket from Farnham to London Waterloo including a Travelcard for zones one to six will increase from £4,580 to £4,624 in 2016.

An Anytime Day Travelcard between Farnham and London Waterloo - an unregulated fare - will also increase marginally, from £38.10 to £38.40.

Alongside the rise in fares, South West Trains has announced it will be increasing the number of carriages on two morning commuter trains between Farnham and Waterloo.

The 7.39am Farnham to Waterloo train will increase from eight carriages to 12, and the 8.56am train will increase from five carriages to eight.

Another change will see the number of carriages on the evening 9.53pm Waterloo to Alton train reduce from 12 carriages to 10 with the removal of first class - effective from this Sunday (December 13).

In a letter to MPs, the managing director of South West Trains, Tim Shoveller, said: “The improved timetable, combined with the major investments we are delivering across the network will deliver a real boost for passengers.

“However, we are far from complacent and we know we can do much more to provide the extra capacity which is needed to provide for the increasing number of passengers on our services and we will continue to work hard to deliver even more.”