Train tickets in England will become more expensive from this Sunday as rail fares are set to rise.

The price of regulated fares, such as season, anytime day, off-peak and super off-peak , will go up by 4.6% from March 2. At the same time, most railcards will rise by £5, or 17%. Most railcards cost £30, which means they will rise to £35. The Disabled Persons Railcard is unaffected by the increase.

The increase is higher than the Retail Prices Index (RPI) measure of for July, which is usually what train fare rises are linked to. The Government said the above-inflation rise is to "recover a shortfall in revenue" since the pandemic, as fewer people used trains during Covid and many people still continue to work from home.

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It comes after train fares rose by 4.9% in March this year, and 5.9% in March 2023. Unregulated fares - which include advance, anytime, off-peak day and first class fares - are set by train companies, so it is down to each firm to decide whether they put up the price of these tickets as well.

ScotRail fares increased across in September last year after a trial to remove peak fares came to an end. This saw the price of a top ticket from Glasgow to Edinburgh increase from £14.90 to £31.40. Wales has not yet announced any train fare increases. Translink, the public transport operator for Northern Ireland, announced a 10% increase in rail fares in June last year.

Paul Tuohy from Campaign for Better Transport said: “Raising rail fares above inflation and hiking the cost of railcards is a kick in the teeth for people who rely on public transport, especially those on low income. Doing this at the same time as keeping fuel duty frozen sends entirely the wrong message. To tackle air pollution, congestion and climate change, we need to make public transport the attractive, affordable choice.”

There are plenty of ways to cut down the cost of your commute. If you can, plan your journey as far in advance as possible to get discounted fares. Cheaper tickets are normally released 12 weeks ahead of time. See as well if you can split your journey to save costs.

This involves splitting your journey up into different sections, so you're buying lots of multiple tickets instead of just one single ticket. If you have a rail card, you can renew it up to 30 days before it expires - so if yours is due to expire soon, it is worth updating it now before the increased rates come in.

A railcard can save you between 30% and 50% off the price of your fare. Finally, if you're a regular traveller, see if you'd by purchasing a season ticket or flexi ticket. How much you could save depends on how often you travel - but it can add up to hundreds of pounds.

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