Blog - Trainsfare

Oct 16, 2018

Fare evasion crackdown in Rome: more checks, more fines and more ticket collection
Transport operator Atac recorded a monthly record of 16,000 fines, of which almost 30% were paid within the first 5 days

Rome’s fare evasion crackdown is showing very positive results. In fact, figures are better than expected and beating records. In September, the transport agency Atac registered a monthly record of 16,000 fines. This is 30% more than forecasted. Also, up to 27.5% fines were paid within the first 5 days of issuing. The effective...

Oct 08, 2018

MBTA postpones fare gates deployment in commuter rail platforms
The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority will wait until 2021 to make it coincide with the installation of the all-electronic payment

kThe Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) is postponing its plan to install new fare gates in commuter rail platforms. The reason is the all-electronic payment system scheduled for 2021. The transport agency believes it makes more sense to wait and deploy both systems at the same time. Fare gates were scheduled for early this...

Oct 01, 2018

Negative balances on Opal cards amount to $2.6 million loss annually
Transport for NSW considered charging a $10 fee for new cards to tackle fare evasion and to promote contactless payment

Beau Giles https://bit.ly/2ya538m

The Australian state of New South Wales is losing $2.6 million annually to fare evasion in its Opal cards system. Fare dodgers are exploiting the possibility of traveling on negative balances. They do not pay the full fair for their trips and then start new cards to avoid paying the shortfall. The Opal cards...

Sep 17, 2018

Fare evasion in Athens’ buses falls by 14%
The mandatory front-door boarding and ticket validating measure introduced in July shows initial promising results

Since July, people can only board Athens’ buses form the front door and are obliged to validate their ticket. After only one week of implementation, this measure already achieved a 100% ticket validation increase. Two months later, good news keep on coming: fare evasion in Athens’ buses has fallen by 14%. The reduction of...

Sep 10, 2018

MetroLink Access Project: studying station designs to improve fare enforcement and security
Metro Transit in Greater St. Louis area temporarily modifies access to three MetroLink stations to obtain evidence-based metrics on fare enforcement

Transport agency in Greater St Louis area (USA) Metro Transit launches today the MetroLink Access Project. This plan consists in temporarily modifying access to three light rail MetroLink stations to study station designs and passenger movement. The objective is to measure the impact station architecture has on fare evasion and security. How does...

Sep 04, 2018

Full height gates to discourage fare evasion
BART is considering investing $200 million to replace its waist high fare gates for a higher barrier infrastructure

@SFBART

After implementing a proof of payment program last March, BART continues seeking measures to tackle fare evasion. The San Francisco Bay Area’ rapid transport operator is now considering replacing its waist high doors for full height gates. The objective is to discourage people from trespassing fare gates without a valid ticket. 22,000 people skip...

Jul 23, 2018

From court citations to administrative fines
Many transport operators in the US are changing their penalty system when it comes to fare evasion to avoid court

US transport operators are shifting to administrative fines

Many US transport operators are shifting from criminal citations to administrative fines for fare evaders. Transit agencies are giving more power to ticket controllers, who can now issue fines to those who do not pay for their use of public transport. There is no need to go to court, thus, payments are lower and...

Jul 16, 2018

Front door boarding and ticket validation in Greek buses to crack down fare evasion
After one week of implementation, the measure has achieved a 100% increase in ticket validation

Front door boarding in buses is now mandatory in Greece

The Greek government is determined to crackdown fare evasion in buses. Since early July, only front door boarding is allowed. Also, passengers must validate their ticket in front of drivers. This approach already exists in many other European cities. In some cases, like Rome, it goes beyond. According to figures released by the Managing...

Jul 09, 2018

Auckland strengthens fare enforcement
Since June 18th, transport officers can issue fines of $150 to fare-dodgers

Auckland Transport

Auckland has given more power to transport officers to strengthen fare enforcement. Changes to the Land Transport Act and new regulations that came into force on June 18th allow controllers to issue infringement notices to passengers who do not carry tickets. Before the new law, officers could ask to see a passenger’s ticket, but could...

Jul 02, 2018

Hands-free ticketing trialing in Singapore
A six-month pilot test is running at four MTR stations to make it easier for people with disabilities to enter and exit

Hands-free ticketing testing in Singapore

Singapore is testing a new hands-free ticketing technology to make it easier for people with disabilities to enter and exit stations. The trial, which started late June, will run for six months in four MRT stations and involves 50 participants. The trial will allow Land Transport Authority (LTA) to assess the effectiveness and feasibility...