The prospect of higher rail fares has sparked anger among commuters packed onto trains "like sardines" and has led to increased calls from unions for the railway industry to be renationalised.
Passengers will see fares rise by 3.6% when price changes come into force in the new year and the hike has been described as a "kick in the teeth" and a "rip-off".
One commuter, who was on a train that hit buffers at King's Cross Station just before the increase was announced, questioned how rail companies can justify the prices.
Natasha Coello, 36, hurt her collar bone when the 0513 from Royston hit the buffers at platform nine, sending everyone on the train "flying" on Tuesday morning.
Speaking about the fare increase Ms Coello, a finance manager, told the Press Association: "We all commute because we want to have more opportunities and better wages in order to pay for the roof over our head, but unfortunately the fares do not even allow you that opportunity due to the cost.
"So for example my ticket costs me £27.30 from Stevenage to London. That is £436.80 a month for me to stand all the way (even though all first class carriages are empty in the morning), for me to have delays due to a driver not turning up, and after today's incident I have paid for me to come to work injured.
"How can they justify these rail prices when on some of the route you are having to stand like sardines with so many issues happening on a regular basis?
"The trains do not even cater for the amount of passengers travelling and our wages do not even increase as much as these fares do."
Ms Coello, a mother-of-two, added she would like a season ticket that caters for people who wish to travel four days per week rather than five, but said it is not available.
Stephen Trigg, chairman of the Reigate, Redhill and District Rail Users' Association, said the hike will create even more "unfairness" for those using the Redhill route.
He added: "Again a 3.6% rise means that in monetary terms the difference between the extra cost along the Redhill Route is again even higher than stations further out of London such as East Grinstead and Three Bridges, emphasising the unfairness felt along the Redhill Route with unfair fares and service cuts.
"The Department for Transport needs to get to grips with Pricing anomalies around London and in providing a service to the Home counties.
"Reigate's train to Victoria will take the same time as a new high speed train on HS2 from Birmingham - that can't be right."
Meanwhile, rail unions stepped up their calls for the railway industry to be bought back into public ownership, with Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union leader Mick Cash calling for an end to "Government sponsored racketeering".
Mr Cash said: "The huge hike in fares confirmed today is another kick in the teeth for passengers who already fork out colossal sums to travel on rammed out, unreliable trains while the private operators are laughing all the way to the bank.
"With over three quarters of Britain's railways now in the hands of foreign states these huge sums of money aren't being invested in essential upgrades and modernisation here, they are being siphoned off to subsidise transport services over the Channel.
"It's no wonder we are a global laughing stock.
"The only solution to the Great British Private Rail Rip-Off is public ownership and an end to this Government sponsored racketeering."
Calculations by the Press Association show a season ticket from Manchester to Liverpool costs £3,044 in 2017 and will cost £3,154 in 2018.
A season ticket between Bath and Bristol costs £1,580 in 2017, and will cost £1,637 in 2018.
A season ticket between Leeds and York costs £2,232 in 2017, and will cost £2,312 in 2018.
Calculations by the Campaign for Better Transport show a season ticket from Basingstoke into the London terminals costs £4,308 in 2017, and will cost £4,463 in 2018.
A season ticket from Cambridge to London costs £4,780 in 2017, and will cost £4,952 in 2018, while a season ticket from Reading costs £4,308 in 2017 and will cost £4,463 in 2018.
Research by the RMT and the TUC has shown rail fares have been increasing at twice the rate of pay rises in recent years.
The RMT estimated that the 3.6% fare hike means a minimum of an extra £337 million in revenue for the train operating companies.
The rail industry said the money will go towards running and improving the network, with profits expected to remain at around 3%.
Paul Plummer, chief executive of the Rail Delivery Group, which brings together train companies and Network Rail, said: "Money from fares pays to run and improve the railway, making journeys better, boosting the economy, creating skilled jobs and supporting communities across Britain, and politicians set increases to season tickets.
"It's also the case that many major rail industry costs rise directly in line with RPI.
"Rail companies are working together to improve performance now, adding thousands more seats over the next 18 months and, longer term, simplifying fares and ticket buying so that the country has the railway it needs to prosper."