The end of paper train tickets is nigh as nine in ten rail journeys will be available via smartphone tickets by the end of the month, rail operators have confirmed.

Following recent upgrades to barriers, passengers travelling from all major stations across Britain including Waterloo, Brighton, Gatwick Airport, Edinburgh Waverley and Glasgow Central are now able to go paperless, the Rail Delivery Group has confirmed.

It means thousands more train passengers will be able to ditch orange tickets as train companies have rolled out new tap-and-go technology at most station barriers all over the country.

The introduction of smart tickets is expected to give rise to a new era of "smart fares" in which rail companies will be able to better track passengers and offer them more personalized prices for journeys.

Previously campaign group Railfuture has warned that elderly people, who do not have smartphones and will still buy tickets in stations, face paying higher fares than those who have adopted the new technology.

It is feared that the number of paper ticket users dwindle they could be forced to pay a premium to cover the overheads associated with buying paper tickets, such as the cost of running ticket machines, printing and paying station staff.