RAIL commuters travelling from Colchester to London will face an increase of £163 on their annual season tickets from next year.

Rail passengers in north Essex will see the price of regulated rail fares increase by 3.2 per cent in January.

The figure is below the 3.6 per cent increase to regulated fares in January this year, the steepest in five years, but continues the trend of fare increases far outstripping average wage rises.

A yearly season ticket costs £5,104 from Colchester to London Liverpool Street. A 3.2 per cent rise will take it up to £5,267.

It is also expected to cost £5,890 from Manningtree, £5,803 from Clacton and £4,569 from Witham.

Colchester MP Will Quince has written to Chris Grayling, Secretary of State for Transport calling for the Government to find a new way to work out increases.

He said: “While it is welcome the Government took action to cap rail fare rises to inflation, we need to move away from the retail price index.

“While I recognise in the short term there would be issues regarding existing franchise agreements and staff contracts, the Government urgently needs to set out a plan to make this transition.”

Mr Grayling has called for future rail fare increases to be based on the lower consumer prices index although rail staff fear this will impact on their wages.

Alex Mayer, Labour MEP for the East of England, said Colchester commuters should “be given a break”.

She backed calls for the lower consumer prices index to be used instead.

She said: “Give commuters a break. Surely after the chaos of the last few months, the Government should not be allowing fares to increase faster than many people’s wages.

“This news is yet another smack in the face for hard working commuters who have been hit again and again by eye-watering rail fare rises.

“We need to be encouraging people onto trains not putting obstacles in the way.”

Commuters and campaigners have called for a freeze in fares but rail

industry leaders said the fares were “underpinning once-in-a-generation investment” in the railways.