A PLANNED hike in rail fares has been slammed as "exorbitant" by Labour's Keighley parliamentary candidate.

John Grogan hit out after the Government announced regulated rail fares would increase by up to 5.9 per cent from March.

The Department for Transport says the rise is being capped at a level well below inflation "to help reduce the impact on passengers".

But Mr Grogan says average fares have now increased by 58 per cent since 2010, twice as fast as wages.

He adds: "At the same time that the Government is urging pay restraint, it does not seem right it's imposing fare increases of this magnitude on hard-pressed workers.

"Northern Trains is now owned and operated directly by the Department for Transport, so the Government could if it wanted set aside these exorbitant increases."

Mr Grogan said the rise would add £80 to the current cost of £1,352 for an annual season ticket for commuters between Keighley and Leeds.

Tim Calow, chair of the Aire Valley Rail Users Group, says: "Currently, Government policy towards Northern appears to be entirely driven by short-term considerations. There appears to be no longer-term plan to attract passengers to the railway and reduce our carbon footprint."