Fares to rise again in ministers' £58bn railways shake-up

Passengers hit with inflationbusting fare rises will fund three-quarters of the improvements as ministers slash taxpayer subsidies over the next five years.

Transport Secretary Ruth Kelly unveiled "the most ambitious plans for expanding the railway for 50 years" in a White Paper.

But Tories dismissed it as "rehashed paper promises" while rail unions claimed passengers faced a 34 per cent hike in fares that would be a "kick in the teeth".

The plans include a shake-up of the fares structure to 'simplify' ticket sales for passengers.

Popular cut-price 'saver' fares were granted a temporary reprieve but ministers made clear that their long-term future is uncertain.

Currently the cost of running the railways is split evenly

between taxpayers and passengers. But by 2014 passengers will pay about 75 per cent.

So of the £57.6billion earmarked for improvements from 2009 to 2014, some £39.2billion will come from passenger fares and £15.3billion from taxpayers.

Ministers envisage a doubling in railway capacity over 30 years with new and longer inter-city

express trains entering service in

2015. Flexible trains built to a common Government blueprint to "go anywhere" - and not be limited to specific lines - will be introduced.

The Government is basing its rail finances on predictions that the railway will expand by at least 180million passenger journeys a year. Yesterday's Rail White Paper set out plans for:

£10billion investment by 2014 to make trains longer and remove 'bottlenecks' to ease crowding.

1,300 extra carriages on the most crowded routes.

100,000 extra seats on inter-city and commuter trains, including 14,500 more seats on Thameslink.

£150 million to upgrade 150 stations.

The green light for the delayed £5.5billion North-South cross-London Thameslink project.

A £425million improvement at Reading station in Berkshire.

£120million towards improvement at Birmingham New Street.

Rail union TSSA said passengers would face 34 per cent fare rises. General secretary Gerry Doherty said: "Ministers claim they want to encourage rail travel and then kick passengers in the teeth with huge regular hikes in fares. They are pricing people off rail and on to the roads."

Tory transport spokesman Theresa Villiers said the Government was launching "rehashed empty promises", adding: "One thing we can guarantee is more rail fare hikes."