A rail company is putting up some of its train fares by almost 145 per cent.

From Monday, East Midlands Trains will raise the price of some off-peak one-day London Travelcards from £37.50 to £92.

The increases will affect journeys to London from Market Harborough after the company pushed back the start of the weekday off-peak period from 8.16am to 10.47am.

Travellers from Kettering and Wellingborough in neighbouring Northamptonshire will also be hit.

The elevated fares will only affect passengers who usually travel after the morning rush-hour and who buy tickets for one day's travel at a time.

The changes are to bring fares for Harborough travellers into line with the rest of the region.

Some fares elsewhere are coming down, with some long-distance commuters getting reductions of up to 28 per cent. Harborough Rail Users' Group Chairman Steve Jones said: "The train companies don't seem to accommodate part-time travellers.

"There are people who use the trains perhaps two or three times a week, for whom a season ticket is not viable and they end up paying lots.

"We've had a number of people coming to us and asking what they can do, but the truth is, nothing – apart from being late for work or moving house."

Ashwin Kumar, director of rail customer watchdog Passenger Focus, said: "This is yet another example of a train operating company rolling out a back-door fare rise by tinkering with ticket restrictions.

"The industry and Government must produce a fare system which is affordable and transparent, if it is to keep passengers on the train."

The £37.50 tickets will now only be available for the 10.47am train out of Harborough and later services.

Passengers will have to choose between taking a later train or paying an extra £54.50 a day.

Travelcard holders using the same early train from Kettering will see their fares rise from £36.50 to £82, and from Wellingborough the cost will go up from £35.50 to £78.

A spokeswoman for East Midlands Trains said the changes would "ensure greater consistency with fares offered from other stations".

She said: "The main effect of the change is to bring stations south of Leicester into line with other stations on our network."

In a letter to the Transport Minister Lord Adonis on August 21, Harborough MP Edward Garnier asked for clarification on how the increases fitted in with Government policy.

He is currently still waiting for a reply .