Rail fare increases averaged nearly 6.8% last year, a full percentage point up on the previous year, according to figures published yesterday by the Office of Rail Regulation. Fares are a source of growing discontent, particularly among commuters in the south-east. Britain's top rail civil servant said this year that people paying £5,000 for a season ticket should tolerate standing for 30-minute journeys. Above-inflation rises are expected well into the next decade as the government, which puts more than £4bn a year into the railways, seeks to impose more of the cost on the passenger.