Train companies can raise the price of regulated fares such as season tickets by one percentage point above the inflation level for July each year which was revealed on Tuesday as 2.5 per cent.

The cost of an annual standard class season ticket from Reading to London will go up £143, to a total of £4,231. An annual Travelcard including London underground zones 1 to 6 will rise £170 from £4,856 to £5,026.

Sian Davies, 26, from Tilehurst, who commutes to London to work, said: “I stand nearly every day and always on the way into London. There simply aren’t enough carriages. It’s ridiculous, and now to top it off they’ve increased fares again too.

“You can’t increase fares without improving the service. It makes me angry but I really have no choice but to pay it. There’s nothing worse than finishing work after a stressful day and then fighting through so many other commuters just to get home.”

And commuter Charlotte Blackman, 24, from Reading, said: “Every time I leave for work I feel a sense of dread. Trains are delayed and cancelled and they are horrifically overcrowded to the point where you can’t get on.

“It has got to the point where I am incredibly angry. I spend a third of my wages on something I have no choice but to pay for and in no way do they offer the advertised service.”

Most season ticket prices are regulated by the Government but train operators can raise fares by two per cent above inflation as long as the overall average stays at RPI plus one per cent, so some fares could increase by 4.5 per cent.

Annual season tickets from Slough to London will rise from £2,416 to £2,501 while a Travelcard will soar by £111 from £3,176 to £3.287.

Seasons tickets from Maidenhead to London are to rise by £99 whilst Travelcards will go up £126 from £3,604 to £3,730.

The rise comes on top of a 3.2 per cent increase in fares in January and just after consumer rights watchdog Which? blasted First Great Western for scoring less than 50 per cent for customer satisfaction in its annual train survey.

The Which? survey asked more than 7,400 regular train passengers to share their opinions and experiences of travelling with the country’s 19 major train operating companies including First Great Western.

It found that 11 out of the 19 train companies failed to score more than 50 per cent in the questionnaire, with First Great Western coming in at 15th place with an average customer satisfaction score of 45 per cent.

Anthony Smith, chief executive of rail watchdog Passenger Focus, said: “Some operators will have to work hard to recover passenger confidence after difficult periods.

Getting trains on time is the key factor underpinning passenger satisfaction, while how delays are dealt with is the key factor behind scores for passengers’ dissatisfaction.

“Better communication during weather-related disruptions may have ensured passengers’ satisfaction in dealing with delays.”

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