COMMUTERS in Salisbury face further increases to fares, as the cost of a season ticket to London rises by £183 from last year.

According to the National Rail, it will now cost £5,420 to buy one year’s season ticket from Salisbury to London Terminals, a 3.5 per cent increase from last year’s fare of £5,237.

Fares were also increased 1.9 per cent (by £97) in 2016.

The increase marks the steepest hike in rail prices since 2013, when fares were raised by an average of 4.2 per cent.

Angry rail users have taken to social media using the hashtag #5kcommuterclub, with some saying their season ticket is now the most expensive item they own after their home and car.

One Twitter user, Evelyn Taylor, said her annual commute would now cost £6,300 including underground costs, but without factoring in the cost of car parking charges.

She told the Journal she travels from her home near Fovant to London five days a week, and that the price hike will leave her with less disposable income.

"I'll not get a salary increase or anything in line with the percentage increase on the rail ticket, so I'll be worse off," she added.

"This is something that anyone commuting from our area should be considering before accepting a position in London."

National Rail said the increase would be used to fund improvements including new trains and improved stations, but union boss Mick Cash said these were “completely bogus claims” and argued that “in fact all the fare increases will fund profits”.

Mr Cash, the general secretary of transport union RMT, said: “Passengers are actually paying more and more for less and less.

"More fare increases and more profit for less train guards and staff and less reliable services.”

The Trades Union Congress (TUC) also raised concerns that British commuters spent "a considerably higher proportion of their salaries" on season tickets compared to other European countries.

Figures showed some tickets were the equivalent of 13 per cent of a commuter's salary, compared to less than five per cent in France, Italy and Germany.