Thousands of train travellers dodging fares, report suggests
UP to one in 20 rail passengers could be travelling without a valid ticket on some routes, according to new research.
One in 20 rail passengers could be travelling without a valid ticket on some routes
A sample of more than 23,000 South West Trains passengers found that as many as 5.5 per cent avoid paying the correct fare.
The study, carried out for the Department for Transport (DfT), discovered cases such as forged tickets, child impersonation and using tickets at the wrong time.
This results in the franchise losing an estimated £25 million in revenue each year, the report found.
Ticketless travel was found to be most prevalent after 7pm on weekdays, with an average rate of 5.1 per cent.
This results in the franchise losing an estimated £25 million in revenue each year
But due to the fare structure the most costly period in terms of lost revenue was the evening peak at £7.7 million, caused by a ticketless rate of 3.6 per cent.
The overall proportion of passengers without a valid ticket was estimated as being between 2.7 per cent and 5.5 per cent.
In general, longer-distance and non-London service segments had lower ticketless travel
In general, longer-distance and non-London service segments had lower ticketless travel than those dominated by short-distance journeys to and from the capital.
London Waterloo to Bournemouth/Weymouth saw just 1.5 per cent of passengers without the correct ticket, compared to 4.6 per cent on trains from London to Shepperton/Kingston.
The research was carried out over 15 days in October and November last year by Steer Davies Gleave, a technical advisor to the DfT in the re-letting of the South Western Franchise.