Thousands of commuters travelling on London Northwestern Railway will not have to pay the train fare increase this year.

Ticket fares for the company have increased by 2.8 per cent. But West Midlands Train (WMT), which runs LNR, says passengers purchasing weekly, monthly and annual season tickets will be offered a discount that offsets the rise.

The company said this was to compensate for the disruption and delays to services since a new timetable was introduced in May 2019.

A three per cent discount will be applied after the 2.8 per cent increase starting from today.

In effect, season tickets will be slightly cheaper than they were in 2019 – but only for the 2020 year, mind.

Currently, commuters can only get the discount at staffed ticket offices. The discounts will be available online and at self-service ticket machines in due course.

Using annual season ticket prices shown online - which we are told do not yet take into account the discount - we have calculated how much commuters could be saving in a year.

Watford Junction to London

Those wanting to purchase an annual season ticket from Watford Junction to London could be paying about £3,193 – taking into account the £99 discount. This represents a £9 saving from last year.

Kings Langley to London

A year-long season ticket from Kings Langley to London will cost about £3,337. The three per cent discount is £103.2 – but the net savings compared to last year is just £9.50.

Passengers looking to buy a weekly or monthly ticket can expect to see savings of between 20p-90p.

Any passengers who purchased an annual season ticket on or after Sunday 15 December 2019 will also be able to receive the discount.

Jan Chaudhry-van der Velde, managing director of WMT: “In recognition of the poor performance, this compensation package for our regular customers when they renew their season tickets will offset the national fares rise.

"We have said for some time now that performance and timekeeping since the May 2019 timetable has not been good enough.

“The timetable added too much complexity which means that even minor delays transmit through the network. Some changes were made in the December 2019 timetable change to remove the complexity, and to add capacity, but the most significant changes to reintroduce simplicity will be implemented in the May 2020 timetable. I apologise again to customers for the poor performance and cancellations since May.

"As well as the timetable simplification in May, 2020 will also see the arrival of the first of our new trains, boosting capacity on our diesel services in the West Midlands."

Tube fares

On the tube, fares will remain frozen for a fourth year in a row.

It means fares for 2020 will see ‘pay as you go’ journeys on the bus, Tube, Tram, DLR, TfL-run rail services (where TfL fares apply) and Emirates Air Line remain the same as they are currently.

Adult off-peak fares including Zone 1 start at £2.40 and off-peak adult Tube, DLR and most London Overground fares within Zones 2-6 are £1.50.

With the Hopper fare, customers can take unlimited bus and tram journeys across the capital within an hour for just £1.50, with the total cost capped at £4.50 for the whole day.

Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said: “I’m proud to be freezing TfL fares for the fourth year in succession, fulfilling the pledge made in my manifesto.

“Alongside our hugely popular Hopper fare we’re making public transport a more affordable option for millions of people across our city. This is vital to encourage more Londoners out of their cars – helping reduce congestion and emissions, and clean up our toxic air.

“This is in stark contrast to the Government who have allowed the failing private rail companies to hike up their fares once again despite letting down London’s suburban rail passengers.”