Find out how much you might be paying in rail fares from January

Passenger groups have called on franchise holder Southeastern to offer value for money after likely new prices were announced last week.

It means a passenger travelling from Tunbridge Wells railway station to London and then using the tube can expect to pay £5,505.34 from the new year.

And this does not factor in car park prices which, at Tonbridge, costs £1,276 for a 12 month permit.

John Reynolds, chairman of pressure group Tonbridge Line Commuters, said: “Workers who have got no choice but to get trains are being hurt and the Department for Transport must get a grip.

“I think we were expecting something like this with inflation not being as severe as some were expecting. We are always in touch with Southeastern about making improvements.”

Mr Reynolds is particularly keen to see greater efforts to keep passengers informed.

The rise, announced by industry body Rail Delivery Group, is lower than the 3.4 per cent for 2018 and slightly below the average rise in salary of 3.2 per cent.

It is also less than the 3.2 per cent fares could have risen by, based on the ceiling set in-line with July’s retail price index figure.

Rail Delivery Group has said 98p from every £1 spent on fares goes into running the railway with fares covering day-today costs.

But watchdog Transport Focus revealed in a national survey that fewer than half [45 per cent] of passengers are satisfied with the value for money of train tickets.

A Southeastern press statement read: “We understand that no one likes to see prices go up, especially our season ticket holders.

“We keep fare increases to a minimum and have frozen unregulated advance fares at January 2018 prices.

“The government regulates annual fare increases, primarily season tickets, to meet the costs of running and upkeep of railways.”

Car park prices are likely to be unveiled in the spring.

How much will I pay for a season ticket?