Fare evasion

An unquantifiable figure, by its very nature. Firstly because you only have a figure for how many are caught. You may estimate the number who go undetected, but you don't really know (that's what "undetected" means). Secondly, of those who are not paying, there will be a proportion who would not travel if they could not do so for free. (or would use another means of transport). . 100% enforcement will not get a penny in extra revenue from them (although it will reduce the crowds by a small extent). There are also a few who a deterred from travelling at all by unpleasant encounters with over-zealous inspectors who refuse to accept that people can make mistakes, have plans change en-route etc. So overzealous enforcement can drive custom away.

A specific example: enthusiasts will recognise how some of their former activities, whilst compliant with the by-laws, are beyond the comprehension of the Oyster software.

This is theoretically possible for a TV license, as there is only one price for the year (unless you have a black and white set) but how to you charge everyone to use the tube? Each customer is individual, and have different travel journeys, some use occasionally. Who do you charge, Londoners only! I live in Dorset, so how do you charge me? How do you charge tourists?

Nah. Revenue are at Bushey at least one week in every five now.

You will never get 100% payment and zero evasion. A lot has been done to remove opportunities for evasion but some of those "defences" have been weakened. Here are some examples of positive developments.

1. Extensive ticket gates on the tube network.

2. Oyster smart ticketing allowing auto extension tickets, chargeable routes, reducing "doughnut fraud" risk.

3. Trackable and blacklistable smart tickets. Ability to check journey histories (on Oyster obviously).

4. Reducing child ticket options on machines. Making some child travel free (double edged issue as some will be encouraged to claim free travel when they're not entitled to it).

5. Making travel more convenient and reducing (in most places) ticket queues. (less excuse for "I couldn't wait to buy a ticket so travelled without one").

6. A range of travel concessions making tube (and bus) travel more affordable for people who might otherwise struggle to pay and may (I use this term with caution) be tempted to evade. [ no need to criticise this - I know most people are honest regardless of their income levels ]

Unfortunately you also need well trained, motivated staff and enough of them to keep ticket gates operable throughout the day. The staff also have to know the rules and regulations and be confident in applying them and using the technology available to them. I'm not that convinced this has ever happened to a sufficiently robust level and I expect the latest changes haven't helped matters one iota.

IMO there has never been enough revenue protection resource on LU and given the vast increases in ridership and congestion I suspect they're less effective than ever. It's a difficult and, at times, thankless job and to do it well takes real skill and knowledge. I am sceptical that LU has ever taken the view that it wants to really have a properly resourced revenue protection function because it costs too much relative to the "apparent" financial return (P Fares collected, prosecutions secured). However there is the issue of perception and if the system is perceived to be easier to rip off because of unstaffed / lightly staffed stations, open gatelines and a 0.000000000001% chance of a ticket check then you can get into a parlous situation very quickly which will deter people from using parts of the network or travelling at certain times. LU has been pretty lucky in that demand has built across the day and on every day of the week meaning you're less likely now than in the 1980s of travelling on empty trains or waiting at deserted stations. That all reinforces the sense of safe travel and it would be highly damaging if that positive trend was to reverse.

Oh and don't believe Mayoral candidates who say a "click of their finger" can instantly remove a £61m fare evasion issue. It doesn't happen like that and you'll never save all of that sum anyway.

It means people buying period tickets at origin for a station just up the line, plus a similar 'short' ticket at destination end and then travelling 'free' in the middle part of the journey. I can recall a snap revenue check at Ealing Broadway many years ago at the interface between what was then BR and the LT lines finding this to have been anything but a rare occurrence (e.g., Hayes & Harlington to Southall plus Tottenham Court Road to Holborn).

In Paris a few years ago, I was on a bus on a Sunday morning when an MPV stopped in front of us and 4 men got out. The bus driver opened the door and everyone was checked without the opportunity to get off. They found one with no ticket, and they didn't take any bull.

In Berlin the U-bahn and S-bahn are both barrier free, but we were checked several times during a 4 day stay, including twice on the same train.

Presumably this involves a station where you can get to a ticket machine without having to go through a barrier? How many LU stations do not have ticket barriers?

And, any idea where the name comes from? Several people here seem to be aware of it but Google isn't (at least not in the first entries).

I'm not convinced of that. I think shoplifters just haven't twigged.
Supermarkets deal with theft by averaging-out the loss among honest customers. When unmanned tills were being considered, the formula included increased percentage loss through fraud, against savings made by sackings.

Bloody right. A really good advert for the leggit brigade wasn't it?...............

Fare evasion is a form of fraud. You can get a criminal conviction for it.

Under the Regulation Of Railways Act 1889 officers of the railway may detain a passenger failing to provide their name and address "until he can be conveniently brought before some justice or otherwise discharged by due course of law".

They can detain someone, but in doing so they enter into a legal minefield and probably go against company policy.

The problem here is that the revenue protection people would have to prove intent - if you have a valid excuse for not having a ticket - lost it, unable to buy one, misunderstanding the validity - there is no intent and thus no fraud, so it becomes a civil matter. And detaining someone in those circumstances could be unlawful imprisonment and/or assault.

Complicated, isn't it??

In Chester once ticket barriers were installed there was a spike in people arriving at the station asking for tickets from one stop outside the station, Bache. Unfortunately a majority of passengers couldn't pronounce the name of their supposed home suburb, and those that could couldn't explain how they managed to get past the two ticket sellers and BTP officer at the foot of the access ramp without a ticket.

I've seen a similar thing in West Yorkshire where both Bramley and Burley Park have had ticket vendors provided in the peaks to capture all the people arriving in Leeds having got on there but there wasn't time (or space) for the Guard to come around.

In a word, busted.

There was a simple answer to this.

Just direct those without a valid ticket to the excess fare window & pay a set charge. No mess, no criminal records & some revenue.

Except, of course, didn't someone pledge to keep ticket windows open on the Tube & then change their mind?

Can't think who it was now.