Fare evasion on the Docklands Light Railway (DLR) has cost almost £11m in a decade.
Latest figures from the east London railway operator show that the estimated value of evaded fares stands at just under £10.9m in the ten years from 2010/11 and 2019/20. These are the latest available figures as no surveys were carried out during the years of the pandemic.
Passenger journeys on the DLR are slowing returning to pre-pandemic levels. With Transport for London (TfL) highlighting the opportunities for future expansion of the network in its 2023 business plan, the London Assembly Transport Committee will meet on Monday to assess just how big the problem of fare evasion on the DLR really is.
A number of senior TfL officers will face questions from members of the committee about the proposed expansion. They will also be questions about the new rolling stock which will see a fleet of 54 trains replace 33 older trains in order to increase capacity.
Those attending the meeting will include three TfL officers: Trish Ashton, Director of Rail and Sponsored Services, Tom Page, General Manager of DLR and Matthew Yates, Head of Projects and Consents. Richard Graham, Managing Director of KeolisAmey Docklands, is also expected to be present.
Nationally, fare evasions on the railway costs around £250m annually, according to the Rail Delivery Group (RDG). That equates to around £460 per minute of lost revenue. Earlier this year, the penalty fare for anyone caught without a valid ticket in England rose from £20 to £100, the first rise since 2005. The penalty fare is charged in addition to the cost of a full-fare single ticket to the passenger's destination.
In the case of someone evading a fare on a train from Manchester to London, the charged would be around £300. The penalty fare is reduced to £50 if it is paid within 21 days. Anyone refusing to pay the penalty may be taken to court and could face a fine of up to £1,000, along with a criminal record. It is thought that fare evasion soared during lockdown since few, if any, ticket checks were made on trains.
Fares are too expensive for normal people,as they are the ones mostly using transport,10£ to get to work is obscene, and it means I cant go anywhere else or it will be more.
I have been contemplating to not pay since that would save me money and change my life for the better, but ima good citizen don’t want to resort to that, but its feeling a necessity. And idk how many Londoners can take this much longer. Most people earn minimum wage. Not enough.
Tfl feels like a scam,
The cost of fair evasion should be balanced against the cost of security. Articles like this never mention that. No point in reducing fare evasion if it costs twice as much to counter it.
There should be a hard headed evaluation of the cost benefit of different system. Here in Berlin there are no ticket barriers at all (how much would that save in London ?) but there are very heavy fines and regular ticket inspections by plain clothed inspectors. If you travel regularly you can guarantee to receive an inspection at least once a month.