TfL fare crackdown cost 20 times more than it saved

19 comments

1. But why should I pay if other people don’t pay and it’s not enforced?

2. This is pretty stupid. The point isn’t for the inspectors to make a profit when they catch people but to act as a deterrent.

   The article does not mention how much the threat of enforcement and a conviction for fare dodging has saved TFL.

3. But without a enforcement team how much would have been lost in revenue? The known presence of the team will mean people will buy a ticket who otherwise wouldnt have.

   Its like security in supermarkets and shops. They will cost more than they physically recover. But the sight of them in shops will deter shoplifters

4. > TFL insisted it took fare evasion “extremely seriously”, adding that its crackdown “provides an important deterrent to potential fare evaders and helps ensure that around 96 per cent of our customers do pay their fares correctly”.

   At the stations I use on a daily basis, especially during rush hour, I’m sure that this isn’t the case. Hardly ever a staff member in sight, and when there are, they just watch as they push their way through the barriers.

5. Torygraph “you must crack down on the minor issue of fare evasion”

   Torygraph “you’ve wasted so much money cracking down on the minor issue of fare evasion”

6. When I was last in London I saw so many gangs just forcing through the barriers without paying. Not sure the staff are even allowed to stop it but if they are probably it’s not worth getting stabbed over.

7. yeah but it also makes it nicer for people that do pay, less yobs just fucking around.

8. It needs to be undercover, I only ever see them when they’re out in a full unit. Never catch people as they see them a mile off and turn around or use their cards for once.

9. It’s not about saving money, it’s about enforcing the law. Speed cameras likewise shouldn’t be about raising money, but ensuring people are actually sticking to the speed limits.

   The moment you start thinking about law enforcement as a profit-seeking enterprise, you might as well throw away the concept of the law entirely.

10. They should let people buy a ticket at the gate, if they can then all good…if they can’t then take action

11. Income from fares after deducting the cost of ticketing, barriers and enforcement is negligible. Public transport exsists mainly on subsidies.

    We should stop this charade and make it free for everyone.

12. Here me out…

    No one rides around on TFL because they’re up on the deal or it’s fun. They’re on the bus/tube/overland because they want to get somewhere. They want see their new girlfriend, they want to get to work and back or they want to cross town to another rail/air terminus.

    It should be free.

    The infrastructure is already there. To remove it all is pointless, it would destroy London for decades and isn’t cost effective. Therefore, it will always exist.

    Everyone on the electoral roll in the appropriate areas, should pay more on their council tax to fund the system. Then with the appropriate card/QR code they can then use the system without hinderance and go about their daily business.

    Tourists and visitors can pay nominal charges at the point of entry or, discounted prices before they arrive in the UK.

    From memory, Manchester already has a town centre circular bus route that is free of charge.

13. Call me stupid. But people wouldn’t dodge fairs if the prices weren’t as expensive so why not make more money by lowering the price of a fair?

14. Could also keep a better eye on the station staff at the barriers lettering their mates through…

15. I’d suggest that the most efficient setup would be to periodically announce crackdowns in the press and do absolutely nothing different during them.

    You’d get 99% of the effect of the crackdown at 0% of the cost.

16. You have to be an absolute peasant cunt to avoid a £1.75 bus fare. Should have special trains and buses just for the lower classes to ride for free, hanging off the roof and just hopping on like they do in India.

17. People in this sub get so worked up about fare evaders its weird. Someone jumping the barriers doesn’t devalue my ticket and it’s really not the reason the prices are so high. Public transport should be more of a public service than a for-profit business. Many other major EU metros are much more “honour system” than TFL and it doesn’t seem to be a problem.

18. I got “caught” by British Rail when I really did want to pay my fair. I paid the penalty and bought a car. Now I almost never use the railway.

19. I watch kids dodge fares all the time, get on the backs of buses or hand their phones or tickets out the window.