Articles

Nice Reactivated Fare Gates and Boosted Staffing to Combat Fare Evasion
Lignes d’Azur implemented a comprehensive plan to counteract an annual loss of 5 million euros due to fare fraud.

Niza tram © AWAAIT

The fare gates at Nice’s underground tramway stations have been reactivated after being previously disabled for the COVID-19 crisis due to safety concerns about passenger proximity. Last month, Gal Nofri, the president of Lignes d’Azur, announced this as one of several initiatives to combat fare evasion. This fraud reportedly results in an annual loss...

Fare Dodging in Amsterdam: A Troubling Rise
Amsterdam's GVB reports a 50% increase in fare evasion since the pandemic, launching a campaign to tackle the issue.

Amsterdam tram © Rico Schwab / Unsplash

Since the start of the pandemic in 2019, fare evasion on Amsterdam’s public transportation has increased by 50%, reports the city’s transportation provider, GVB. In 2022, 4.5% of passengers on trams without conductors were found riding without tickets; similar increases were seen on metros, buses, and trams with conductors.  The problem, according to the...

NYC Subway Measures Fare Evasion Using AI
MTA chooses AWAAIT's AI-technology for subway fare evasion monitoring

NYC Turnstiles © Asael Peña / Unsplash

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), which operates New York City’s subway, has started employing artificial intelligence (AI) to combat the growing issue of fare evasion, a problem that costs the city hundreds of millions each year.  The AI surveillance software, created by the Barcelona-based company AWAAIT, has been in use in seven subway stations...

MTR’s Response to Fare Evasion: Increased Penalties and Inspections
Over 600 Cases Identified in a Week, Including Misuse of the Government's Discount

20230714_TF_MTR_MeasuresFareEavsion Midjourney image promped by AWAAIT

In Hong Kong, A citywide campaign against fare evasion has been started by the MTR Corporation in coordination with the Transport Department. Between June 25 and July 3, they reported 671 occurrences of ticket evasion, 89 of which involved the abuse of the government’s $2 travel discount program.  To reduce fare evasion, the MTR...

MTA’s New Approach to Fare Evasion: A Focus on Education, Equity, Environment, and Enforcement
The Four E's of MTA's Anti-Fare Evasion Strategy Unveiled in the Blue-Ribbon Panel's Inaugural Report

MTA's Anti-Fare Evasion Strategy NYC subway Midjourney image promped by AWAAIT

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) Blue-Ribbon Panel on Fare Evasion released its first report, outlining a number of proposed improvements, during a press conference on May 17th. The report was intended to address the growing issue of fare evasion. The report notably devotes four pages (55–64) to discussing four areas where the MTA intends...

MTA’s Pioneering Methodologies to Measure Fare Evasion
The synthesis of traditional surveys and state-of-the-art technology creates a robust blueprint for fare evasion measurement

Mearuring fare evasion in Public Transport Midjourney image promped by AWAAIT

On May 17, the Blue-Ribbon Panel for Fare Evasion of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) issued a report detailing the problem and outlining its two methods for measuring it. According to the most recent data, a concerning pattern has emerged: fare evasion rates increased significantly from pre-pandemic levels of 3 to 6% to 13.5%...

The Challenge of Measuring Fraud in Public Transport
Methods, Limitations and the Assistance of AI

The Challenge of Measuring Fraud in Public Transport, Transit, Fare Evasion, AI, video analytics Midjourney image prompted by AWAAIT

Challenges in Measuring Fare Evasion Fraud in public transportation is a major issue that causes significant financial and operational challenges for public transport operators. However, accurately measuring the extent of fare evasion is a challenging task, as current methods of measuring fare evasion have significant limitations. The good news is that artificial intelligence (AI)...

MWC Attendees Drive Barcelona Metro’s Best February in History
Ridership figures surpass pre-pandemic levels, highlighting the metro's crucial role in city mobility

© AWAAIT AI

Barcelona’s metro network has set a new record, registering its best-ever February with over 34.8 million validations, surpassing pre-pandemic numbers. The increase is part of an ongoing upward trend in usage since the beginning of 2022. A contributing factor to this growth is the recovery of visitors to the Mobile World Congress (MWC), prompting...

Brisbane deploys extra officers to tackle fare evasion
Authorities want to reduce a spike in fare infractions and violent incidents in public transport

Brisbane Bus © choosebrisbane.com.au

Annually, billions of euros are lost to fare evasion worldwide. It is a corrosive problem for public transport companies, posing a threat to safety and financial sustainability. Authorities in Brisbane, Australia, are deploying extra public transport safety officers to patrol and monitor fare evasion. The new senior officers will patrol on trains, ferries and...

Full-height fare gates to curb down fare evasion in Rennes, France
The new gates cost €7m and should save Rennes metro €15m over the next 15 years

Station Charles de Gaulle at Métro de Rennes © Wikimedia Commons, the free media repository

The city of Rennes, France, will soon be giving away its status as the last city in the country to use an open system for ticketing at the Metro. In a bid to curb down fare evasion, authorities are installing full-height fare gates at all current 16 stations on the city’s STAR network. Fare...