Britain's rail fares rip-off raced full steam ahead yesterday even as privately run services ground to a halt in the face of the latest stormy weather.

Privateers' body the Rail Delivery Group (RDG) tried to spin new January rates as good for travellers but a look at the numbers quickly revealed more above-inflation rises.

Firms were bullied by the government into limiting overall price increases of "regulated" fares - mainly season tickets - to no more than 3.1 per cent.

They were allowed to put some up by up to 5.1 per cent so long as the average remained at 3.1, still three times the average pay rise in Britain.

Some season commuter tickets in south-east England broke the £5,000-a-year barrier for the first time as a result of the rises.

Yet RDG director-general Michael Roberts boasted that fares had only gone up by 2.8 per cent across the the board.

"The lowest increase across all fares for four years shows the industry's determination to maintain the phenomenal growth in rail travel since the mid-1990s," he claimed.

The headline figure was helped by publicly owned East Coast Mainline, which stood alone among rail franchises by announcing real-term cuts to many of its tickets.

Privatisation-threatened East Coast drew praise when it announced freezes or below-inflation rises on many of its routes last week.

Off-peak and anytime tickets from London to centres such as Edinburgh and Newcastle are some that will remain the same.

But on privately run routes such as Virgin's West Coast Mainline to Glasgow people unable to secure advance tickets face rises well above inflation.

Anytime standard tickets from London to Manchester rise 4.2 per cent to £160.50, while a similar fare from London to Glasgow will go up 4.14 per cent to £176.

Though first-class travellers to Glasgow got a handout with prices up only 1.75 per cent.

The RDG's propaganda offensive included a pie chart claiming that private firms only take 3p in the pound in profit from income.

But it also showed that another 11p goes on hiring trains from shadowy private rail leasing firms and 9p is spent on "interest payments and other costs."

Privateers have historically borrowed heavily on the money markets in order to secure contracts paid by the public purse.

Shadow transport secretary Mary Creagh complained that rail fares have risen 20 per cent since 2010 and said Labour would "put a tough cap on rail fares."

But rail union RMT general secretary Bob Crow said private ownership was to blame.

"Today's disruption to services is worsened by a billion-pound backlog on essential maintenance and renewals, coupled with cuts to staffing, which leave Britain's railways constantly on the edge.

"The link between privatisation, high fares and the repeated disruption to services could not be clearer.

"Public ownership is the only solution to this outrageous racketeering."