Southeastern passengers are set to benefit from a £5.5million scheme to introduce smart cards across the network, it has been announced.

From December 2016 Southeastern will bring in the new ticketing system, initially for season tickets only, as an alternative to paper tickets in a bid to make journeys more convenient.

Rail Minister Claire Perry said the government aims to bring the railway into the 21st century.

The Conservative MP for Devizes said: "We are making the biggest investment in rail since the Victorian era while taking advantage of technology like smart cards.

"Smart ticketing is a common sense innovation that makes life easier for passengers. It allows for more straight forward journeys and I’m delighted Southeastern will be rolling them out across much of their network."

Smart cards are expected to improve travelling by allowing passengers to pass through barriers more quickly and create shorter queues at ticket machines.

David Statham, Managing Director for Southeastern, said: "These [Smart Cards] will allow our passengers to beat those Monday morning queues as they will make it much easier and quicker for passengers to buy weekly, monthly or annual season tickets online and load on to their smart card before setting off on their journey."

Southeastern is the latest operator to sign up to the government’s £80 million SEFT programme, which aims to bring in consistent ticketing on different types of transport across London and the south east.

Because SEFT scheme is government-backed, smart cards will operate between different train companies across the region.