Train company accused of rip-off smart card ticket prices

A major rail company that runs the country’s least reliable train service has been overcharging some passengers by up to 80 per cent. Customers have said that a Southern “smartcard” can make fares vastly more expensive as it does not offer a super off-peak ticket. Southern claims the travel card, which allows passengers to pre-book journeys, makes travelling easier and quicker. However, Chris Baber-Davies, 27, who commutes from Haywards Heath, West Sussex, to London, said the cards make some train fares as much as 79 per cent more expensive.