Cost of season tickets to soar under new system

Thousands of rail commuters face a huge rise in the cost of season tickets, the Standard can reveal.

Some travellers could pay as much as £600 more for an annual pass, campaigners claim.

From 2010 the cost of a season ticket will be based on which zone the starting station is in rather than its distance from the central London terminus.

About 50,000 people - such as those at the inner edge of a zone - will be hundreds of pounds worse off, although the same number could see a small reduction in the cost of their season ticket.

Zonal pricing for single and day return fares was introduced at the beginning of this year. Although some passengers saw their fares fall, others, such as those who travel from Kingston and Surbiton, had to pay 35 per cent more.

Campaigners now fear the cost of an annual or monthly pass will rise by the same rate when zonal pricing for season tickets is introduced in 2010. That would equate to a £630 rise for a £1,800 annual pass.

Documents released under the Freedom of Information Act reveal the Government is preparing for a backlash from the travelling public. A memo sent to the Transport Secretary from the working group responsible for introducing zonal prices admits some passengers will see a "significant" increase in fares. It says the changes will need "careful media handling".

The memo says zonal pricing will simplify London's ticket pricing structure and is a necessary step towards introducing Oyster cards across the capital.

But it continues: "To arrive at zonal fares without losing revenue, some fares will increase and others decrease. The fact that some individual fares at the margin will increase by a significant percentage ... means that the media will need careful handling to ensure that the 'simpler rail fares for London and no fares increase overall' message is effectively communicated."

The Association of Train Operating Companies said the condition of introducing zonal pricing was there would be no overall increase in revenue from fares. All rail companies, except South Eastern, are also limited to a rise of retail prices index plus one per cent - which this year equated to 4.8 per cent.

However, this does not prevent rail firms from increasing fares for stations as a result of zonal pricing. For commuters in Kingston, the price of a ticket used to be based on its 12-mile distance to central London. But as the station is in zone 6, the cost has risen to tally with other stations in that zone - taking a day return fare from £6.80 to £9.20.

Local MP Ed Davey is now campaigning to have Kingston and Surbitonstations moved to zone 5. He said: "Local commuters are getting ripped off by these unfair fares.

"Why should some people face bills of more than £400 a year because of outof-date, unfair and arbitrary zoning.

"The Office of Rail Regulation now have a cast-iron case to investigate and act against high local rail fares. If we win, some commuters could potentially save hundreds of pounds on travel."

Mr Davey also claimed Government research had shown that the move to zonal pricing would not result in any increase in London rail use.

A spokeswoman for South West trains, which covers Kingston and Surbiton, said they would be meeting Mr Davey to discuss the issue. But she said the allocation of zones was a matter for central government.