Northampton rail commuters face a 4.1 per cent rise in regulated fares next year after official figures showed stubbornly high inflation in July.
Retail price index (RPI) inflation dipped to 3.1 per cent in July from 3.3 per cent in June - dooming train passengers to a sharp rise in ticket prices from January, as fares are pegged to the index.
Train companies raise average regulated fares such as season tickets by one percentage point on top of July’s RPI inflation figure - with the price hike kicking in from January.
This year passengers were hit with a 4.2 per cent average rise in regulated fares - although this was lower than initial plans for 6.2 per cent.
The Government retreated from plans to allow fares this year to rise by three per cent on top of RPI in the face of vocal opposition from passengers.
There are a number of train services used by commuters in and around Northampton.
The vast majority of rail services though Northampton are provided by London Midland, with a handful of services operated by Virgin Trains.
East Midlands Trains serve the line from Wellingborough to London St Pancras, and there is also a Chiltern Railways service from Kings Sutton to Marylebone.