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

MetroLink Access Project

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...

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 tickets 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 Director...

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...

Rome installs turnstiles in bus 669
The deployment is part of an experimental system to fight fare evasion

Turnstiles in Rome's bus 669 TRENINO BLU. https://bit.ly/2ts9R7g

Since June 11th,  Rome’s bus 669 has a new look. Public transport company ATAC has introduced turnstiles in the southern suburbs shuttle service as part of an experimental system to fight widespread fare evasion. After the pilot test, the operator will extend the turnstile system to other lines that have similar routes to 669....

SNCF installs automatic validation gates in Nice
The deployment is part of the operator’s scheme to reduce fare evasion and improve travellers’ safety

SNCF installs automatic validation gates

French operator SNCF (Société Nationale des Chemins de Fer Français) has installed automatic validation gates in Nice. These doors, which lead to the platforms, replace the fixed security gates. Now the gates only open when commuters present a valid ticket. This can be original, on the phone or printed on paper–. The change is part...

Ticket fine reprieve measure boosts revenue for Prague’s DPP
Fare dodgers can opt in for half reduced ticket fines if they buy a year-long public transport pass

Innovative ticket fine reprieve in Prague

The public transport authority in Prague DPP introduced a new measure to tackle fare evasion on busses, trams, and metro. When caught traveling without a valid ticket or pass, fare dodgers are presented with two options: either pay a full fine of 800 Czech Korunas (around €30), or pay half of the fine by...

G:link registers a 10% fare evasion rate
People sneaking into the Gold Coast Light Rail costs Queensland state more than $1 million

G:link trams

Almost one in 10 people ride G:link trams for free. Queensland’s Gold Coast Light Rail registered about 8.7 million passenger trips in 2016-2017. Yet, around 724,000 were taken without paying the fare, according to estimates. This implies more than $1 million in revenue loss. Figures revealed the Gold Coast light rail would have achieved...

Fare gates to fight fraud in public transport in Lille
Lille (France) plans to have fare gates installed in its sixty metro stations by 2020 to reduce fare evasion

Fare gates in Barcelona subway

November last year, Lille’s metro (France) installed fare gates in one of its stations. Four months later, results were very positive. Ticket validation has risen sharply -up to more than 16%-, meaning 700 additional validations on average per day. In 2013, the public transport operator for the Lille Métropole, Transpole, registered a 18.4% fraud...

Open-door validation tests in Metro de Madrid
Fare gates remain open permanently and only close when someone does not validate their ticket

Open-door validation tests in Metro de Madrid Metro de Madrid. @metro_madrid

In general, fare gates in public transport do not open unless passengers validate their ticket. This practice, which intends to guarantee payment of use, is implemented in the vast majority of subway systems around the world. Metro de Madrid, however, is thinking of applying another approach already existing in Tokyo: open-door validation. The Spanish...