Millions face biggest train fare hikes in a decade from TODAY – how to avoid it

TRAIN passengers in England and Wales have been hit with the largest fare rise in nearly a decade today, with ticket prices increasing by up to 3.8%.

The hike is the biggest jump in nine years.

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All so-called “regulated” fares, which include season tickets, and some anytime and off-peak tickets, are affected.

Other tickets including first class and advance tickets aren’t subject to the same changes.

The annual fare increase has been capped to prevent it from being artificially high due to rising inflation, ministers said in December, when the hike was announced.

Train fares are calculated using the RPI rate of inflation measure which is announced in August each year.

Following the increase, an annual commute from Oxford to London including a London travelcard will increase by £245 to £6,700.

A yearly ticket from Tunbridge Wells to London including travel card will rise by more than £220 to £6,033.

And the commute from Macclesfield to Manchester will leap by £84 to £2,284 a year.

But there are ways to avoid the increase.

Book in advance

If you need to take a one-off journey, you can book up to 12 weeks in advance to take advantage of cheaper tickets.

For some journeys, where the train companies estimate demand will be low, they sell a limited number of tickets 12 weeks before the date of travel at a significant discount.

These often come with more limited flexibility – for example “advance” tickets usually have to be used on a specific train.

It is also worth avoiding peak times if you can.

Try to avoid travelling between 6.30am-9.30am or 3.30pm-6.30pm.

Outside of these times you can buy off-peak tickets which are much cheaper than flexible anytime tickets.

Set up price alerts

Ticket booking websites often have alerts you can sign up to which can help you track when to buy fares at the cheapest price.

The Trainline ticket alert tool is free and claims to save 61% on your tickets when you book ahead instead of buying them on the day.

However make sure you check fees before booking.

Split your journey

You can also use sites such as Splitmyfare.co.uk to find out whether buying multiple tickets is cheaper than buying one single.

For example, a single ticket from London to Manchester next Monday costs £66.10, or £28.60 if you buy a ticket from London to Crewe, and then another ticket from Crewe to Manchester.

However, this option might take longer.

Also, be aware that websites that help you find these tickets often charge a percentage for their fee. In the example above, that added more than £5 to the price of the ticket.

Renew early

Depending how much longer you have left on your season ticket, it may be worth renewing it today so you still pay this year’s prices.

The way to work out whether this is worth doing is to work out how many weeks you have left on your existing ticket.

Then you can divide the total cost of your ticket by 52, and times that number by the number of weeks remaining. This gives you the amount you would forfeit by buying a new ticket.

Now find out the cost of your new ticket. If the difference between this and the total cost of your existing ticket is more than the amount you are forfeiting by buying early, it’s worth it.

Get a railcard

Perhaps the best option for reasonably frequent travellers is a railcard – and there is one available for all ages.

A Two Together Railcard enables you and another person to get a third off rail fares when you travel together.

It’s not just a card for couples either – you can get one with a best friend or a family member.

It costs £30 – that’s £15 each – so after a couple of trips, the card could well have paid for itself.

It applies to most adult fares throughout the UK – the only time you can’t use your Two Together Railcard is morning peak times and, of course, if you’re not together.

There is also the Senior Railcard if you are 60 years old or over, which gives you a third off train travel.

You can buy one up to two weeks before your 60th birthday if you get it online, but it’ll only be valid from your birthday onwards.

If you buy from a station, you cannot buy in advance of your 60th birthday.

You also might qualify for one of the other railcards that offer the one third discount.

If you are a veteran of the UK Armed Forces you may be able to get a Veterans Railcard, or people aged 16-30 have their own railcards.

If you have a disability, there is a Disabled Persons Railcard.

A Family and Friends railcard gives a third off train travel for adults and 60% off for kids.

This post first appeared on thesun.co.uk