Government funding for the rail industry has fallen to its lowest level since the start of the decade, figures show.
Around £4.8 billion was spent supporting railways across the UK in 2015/16, according to data from the Department for Transport (DfT), Transport Scotland and the Welsh Government.
This is a fall of 2% on the previous year and a drop of 12% compared with 2013/14 funding levels.
READ MORE: ScotRail passengers warned to plan for weeks of travel disruption in Central Belt
The bulk of the money goes towards Network Rail for the upkeep of stations and tracks, as well as major projects like HS2 and Crossrail.
The figures show the lowest total since 2010/11, when £4.5 billion was spent by Government. However, it is around three times the amount invested in the year 2000/01.
Shadow transport secretary Andy McDonald said: "Commuters are increasingly shouldering the cost of running our railways despite enduring regularly overcrowded and unreliable services.
READ MORE: ScotRail passengers warned to plan for weeks of travel disruption in Central Belt
"And it's passengers rather than train operating companies who deserve the Government's support, which is why Labour are committed to bringing the railways back into public ownership so that every penny can be spent on improving services and keeping fares down."
Hundreds of thousands of commuters have faced travel misery in recent months amid a string of rail disruption and strikes, particularly in the south of England.
Mick Cash, general secretary of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union, said: "We understand and accept why this essential public service is supported by Government.
READ MORE: ScotRail passengers warned to plan for weeks of travel disruption in Central Belt
"What we do not accept is that a national asset, supported by passengers and taxpayers has become a corporate welfare racket for the private sector to suck profits out of when working people are subsidising the operation to the tune of nearly £5 billion a year."
All figures were adjusted for inflation.
A DfT spokesman said: "We are delivering the biggest rail modernisation programme for over a century, investing more than £38 billion in our network.
"This is having a real impact with major projects completed at Birmingham New Street, Reading, London King's Cross and a new concourse at London Bridge. By the end of 2019, we will have more than 3,600 new carriages introduced on the Network.
"Longer-term, HS2 will be the new backbone of our national rail network and help us build an economy that works for all."
The DfT revealed plans on Thursday to allow rail passengers to claim a quarter of the journey fare back if their train is more than 15 minutes late.
Only three in four Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) trains arrived on time between August 21 and September 17 this year, with almost one in 10 cancelled or arriving more than 30 minutes late, Network Rail figures show.
GTR runs four services: Southern, Thameslink, Great Northern and Gatwick Express.
Mick Whelan, general secretary of Aslef - the train drivers' union, said: "Once more we are left confused over the murky world of finance in the privatised railway industry.
"This is a world where every journey is subsidised by the public purse, by the British taxpayer, but private profits are then taken out of the railway, despite the huge public subsidy."
A Welsh Government spokesman said: "We are concerned by data published by the Office of Rail and Road which illustrates that, between 2011 and 2015, only around 1% of the UK Government's investment in rail infrastructure enhancements was spent within the Wales Route area.
"We are disappointed that the UK Government has so far not agreed to devolve these powers and funding, despite the recommendations by the Commission on Devolution in Wales.
"We are pressing the UK Government to ensure the resultant constraints this historical underfunding has imposed on rail services in Wales are addressed, and that the route receives a fair share of the funding available for enhancing the rail network."
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