Rail Penalty Fare value reform – Transport Focus response

12 March 2021

Responding to the Department for Transport consultation on the proposed changes to the value of Penalty Fares, Transport Focus chief executive Anthony Smith, said:

“Fare dodgers are in effect being subsidised by the vast majority of honest passengers. Fare-paying passengers will welcome the opportunity to have their say on what is the right penalty.

“It’s right that train companies catch and deter those who evade paying for their ticket. But in doing so they must make sure that effective safeguards exist for passengers, including staff training to ensure that discretion is shown in the case of innocent mistakes.”