- New ticket gates for stations across
England with £33 million to crack down on fare
evasion and deliver a fairer railway
- Funding to tackle deliberate fare evasion to recover up
to £400 million lost annually and
reinvest in better journeys for passengers
- Passengers already seeing the benefits of a simpler
and fairer ticketing system ahead
of the creation of Great British
Railways with expanded Pay As You Go and digital ticketing
trials
As part of Government's landmark rail reforms,
new ticket gates will be installed at stations
and platforms across
England targeting fare dodger hot spots to
crack down on deliberate ticketless travel and make sure
fares go towards improving the services passengers
depend on.
Passengers will benefit from a fairer
railway with £33.4 million of
funding to support the rollout of a range of gate
types at stations which currently have none,
including new taller gates to
prevent barrier jumping, and more of the
standard waist-high gates currently used
across Great Britain and on the London Underground.
Fare evasion puts up to £400 million of rail revenue at risk each
year and every pound lost to fare dodging is
a one that can't be spent on improving
services - whether maintaining the network,
upgrading carriages, or improving Wi-Fi. These new
gates will help protect revenue and put it back to
work where it belongs: delivering better journeys for
passengers.
Great British Railways (GBR) will be focused
on creating a fairer deal for
passengers including tackling fare evading and simplifying
the complex web of ticketing to deliver a
more reliable and affordable services. Changes
are already underway with the expansion
of contactless Pay As You
Go technology, digital ticketing trials
across the East Midlands and South Yorkshire,
and the incoming GBR app where
passengers will be able to buy tickers, check train
times and access a range of support all in one place.
The Rail Minister, Lord Peter Hendy
said:
Fare evasion is not a victimless crime - it undermines confidence
in the railway and means passengers lose out on
millions in revenue which should
be invested to improve services for
everyone.
By stopping fare dodgers before they reach
the platform, we're protecting taxpayer cash,
supporting investment in the network and ensuring the
railway works better for the millions of passengers who do the
right thing every day by paying their way.
As we deliver significant reform across our railways in
the lead up to Great British Railways, we are creating
a truly joined
up railway which is more accountable and
better equipped to deliver the reliable, modern railway
passengers deserve, to create jobs, growth and homes.
The new ticket gates will have passengers in mind with
options to scan digital tickets, insert paper tickets or tap out'
where contactless travel is
available and follow wider changes coming in across
the railway to improve ticketing and
stop fraud. Earlier this year
the Government announced under Great
British Railways passengers will be able
to claim Delay Repay directly from wherever
they buy their ticket, making it quicker and
easier to apply for compensation.
Operators allocated funding to support the delivery of
new gates include:
- Avanti West Coast - Stafford, Liverpool Lime Street
- East Midlands Railway - Market Harborough
- Greater Anglia - Witham, Rayleigh, Ware,
Hertford East and Manningtree
- Thameslink Southern Great Northern - Royston, Stevenage,
Elephant and Castle, Worthing and Gipsy Hill
- TransPennine Express - Manchester Piccadilly
- West Midlands Trains - Tamworth, Nuneaton, Worcester Foregate
Street and Worcester Shrub Hill.
This is the first stage of a wider programme to increase the
number of ticket gates in
use across England with the potential for further
rollout across the
UK in the future. Delivery of the
new ticket gates is expected by mid-2028, with
the first phase of roll out in place during the first
half of 2027.
Notes to editors
- Some of the stations receiving funding
span other operators in addition to
those listed above. Station-level details for some operators
are subject to finalisation of planning
permission and will be confirmed in due course.
- The type of ticket gate equipment installed
will vary by station, depending on individual operator
procurement and the specific requirements of each site.
- The Rail Delivery Group (RDG) estimates that
annual revenue lost to fraud and ticketless travel is at least
£350 to £400 million.
- Full details of the stations will be confirmed once planning
permission, listed building consent and landlord agreements have
been finalised.
- Train operators bid for funding and each proposal
was robustly evaluated before approval. The funding was earmarked
as part of the Spending Review.
