Train Firms Urged to Implement ‘Yellow Card’ System for Ticketless Passengers
Train companies are being encouraged to issue warnings instead of fines for passengers without tickets
England, Transport Focus, Rail Fare Evasion, Sam Williamson, Northern
London: Train companies in England are being asked to consider a “yellow card” system for passengers who don’t have the right ticket. Instead of slapping them with fines or taking them to court, they’d get a warning.
This idea comes from Transport Focus, a rail watchdog. They think it’s better to record the names of these passengers digitally and only fine them if they keep making the same mistake.
It’s all happening because the rail regulator is reviewing how fare evasion is handled. Recently, it was revealed that some folks were being taken to court for minor ticket issues.
Take Sam Williamson, for example. He almost ended up in court for not paying just £1.90 more than he should have. His case got a lot of people talking, and Northern, the train operator, decided to drop all live prosecutions against passengers who used railcard discounts incorrectly.
Some companies, like Cross Country and Southeastern, already have this yellow card system. Merseyside Rail is also planning to roll one out this year.
Transport Focus is also suggesting a digital way to keep track of railcards. This would help inspectors check if passengers forgot or lost their cards.
They even mentioned that passengers could get reminders when their railcards are about to expire. That sounds pretty handy, right?
Natasha Grice, who’s in charge of rail at Transport Focus, said they’ve been worried about how complicated rail fares can be. It makes it tough for some people to buy the right ticket.
She added that while it’s important for everyone to pay for their ticket, they don’t want innocent mistakes to lead to unfair punishments.
Fare evasion is a big deal, costing the industry around £240 million each year. The Department for Transport is looking into this after a lot of prosecutions were thrown out due to a legal ruling that said some procedures used by rail companies were not valid.
Then-Transport Secretary Louise Haigh asked the Office of Road and Rail to take a closer look at how fare evasion is managed.
Now, the ORR wants to hear from anyone who’s been penalized for boarding trains without the right ticket. It’s all about making the system fairer for everyone.