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Regulated rail fares in England are set to rise by 4.6% next year, while the price of most rail cards will rise by £5, the government has announced.
The increases were not mentioned by the chancellor in her budget speech to the House of Commons earlier on Wednesday, but were instead mentioned in the Treasury's budget document.
The changes will come into effect on March 2, 2025.
Elsewhere in the Budget, Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced tax rises worth £40 billion in a bid to clean up public finances and promised billions in extra spending on schools and the NHS.
Around 45% of rail fares are regulated by the government in England, Wales and Scotland – but this increase only directly affects travel within England.
Regulated fares include season tickets covering most commuter routes, some off-peak return tickets for long-distance travel, and flexible tickets for travel in and around major cities.
Train operators are free to set prices for unregulated fares, but they generally increase by similar proportions.
The Treasury said the 4.6% increase in regulated rail fares in 2025 was one percentage point higher than July's Retail Price Index (RPI) measure of inflation.
The government said: “This is the lowest absolute increase in three years.”
He added that the £5 increase in the cost of rail cards – which offer discounts to different groups of people – would be subject to an industry review. Most commonly this costs £30 per year.
Holders of the disabled rail pass will not be affected, the government said.
He added that rail cards save users on average “up to £158” a year.
However, the Campaign for Better Transport said increasing rail fares beyond inflation and increasing the cost of rail cards was a “kick in the teeth” for people who rely on transport public, particularly those with low incomes.
The group said: “Doing this at the same time as keeping fuel taxes frozen sends the completely wrong message.
“To tackle air pollution, traffic congestion and climate change, we need to make public transport an attractive and affordable choice.”
Meanwhile, Rail Partners, a group representing private rail organisations, argued the government should focus on increasing passenger numbers, not increasing the price of current passengers.
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The price of disabled rail cards will not be affected by the planned £5 increase
Its chief executive, Andy Bagnall, said: “The government should set fares at a level which will ultimately encourage more people to travel by train in the future, helping to ensure the long-term financial viability of the sector and to leverage the wider economic and environmental benefits of the sector. railway for the entire nation.
“The focus should be on increasing passenger numbers, not on charging existing passengers more.”
Other measures announced in Wednesday's Budget included increases in the basic rates of capital gains tax, an increase in the proportion of National Insurance contributions businesses must pay and an increase in the rates cap one-way bus tickets from £2 to £3.
Reeves also raised the minimum wage, maintained a 5p cut on fuel duty for another year and made several commitments to fund rail infrastructure, including the HS2 section to London's Euston station .
Conservative leader Rishi Sunak said “never in the history of our country will taxes be higher than under this Labor government”.
He also said it was “absurd” to suggest Labor had inherited difficult circumstances, after Reeves accused the Tories of leaving a £22bn “black hole” in the public finances.
