EXCLUSIVE A Lib Dem hopeful for London Mayor has claimed South London neighbourhoods ‘deserve a better deal’ over fare evasion
Sir Sadiq Khan must “put an end to Transport for London (TfL) marking its own homework” on fare evasion, a Mayoral candidate has declared. She claimed the problem is especially bad on the tram network, and as such neighbourhoods in Croydon, Sutton and Wimbledon ‘deserve a fairer deal so they don’t lose out from the Mayor’s inaction.”
Sarah Olney, one of two Liberal Democrat candidates to publicly declare their interest in being the party’s nominee for the 2028 London Mayoral race, demanded an independent audit of how the network estimates fare evasion as part of a six-point plan to crack down on fare dodging.
She also demanded that TfL “come clean” by publishing the “unadjusted” evasion figure – which, at £210 million, is 10 per cent higher than the £190 million number that officials currently claim – and to publish quarterly public reports detailing evasion by mode and line, as well as penalty charges issued.Officials revealed in August that they incorporate a 10 per cent reduction on the estimated value of the amount lost to evaders due to the “limitations of available data.” The admission, made at first to the Tube Alerter website and shared with the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS), is due to officials “not wanting to overstate the estimated level of revenue loss.”
“The Mayor has been asleep at the wheel on fare dodging, which is a £200 million black hole in TfL finances,” the Richmond Park MP told the LDRS.
“He must put an end to TfL marking its own homework and come clean on the true cost of fare evasion.
“Leaving gates open and unstaffed is a kick in the teeth for the vast majority of Londoners who are forced to pay the bill for those cheating the system.
“As Mayor, I would commission an independent review to reveal the true scale of fare evasion and pilot new, more secure gates to get a grip on the issue.”
Ms Olney also claimed that fare evasion on trams was not being given enough attention. While the overall fare evasion rate across the TfL network was 3.5 per cent, 7.3 per cent of journeys on the primarily South London grid was 7.3 per cent.
She added: “The problem is much worse on London’s tram network. Communities in Croydon, Sutton and Wimbledon deserve a fairer deal so they don’t lose out from the Mayor’s inaction.”
TfL officials have insisted that they are working towards meeting their target of a 1.5 per cent fare evasion rate. Currently, people bumping the barriers costs the network between £190 million and £210 million per year.
Last week, the LDRS observed a new operation which saw TfL and British Transport Police (BTP) staff work in partnership to crack down on persistent fare evaders at dodging hotspots.
Ms Olney also called on officials to pilot taller, modern gates at the 20 stations on the network with the highest evasion rates – funded by a grant from the Department for Transport’s £33.4 million gate line programme announced in July.
In July, the Mayor confirmed that TfL “will be monitoring the performance of the new-style ticket barriers at High Wycombe to better understand their effectiveness in deterring fare evasion and improving revenue protection outcomes.”
He added: “The findings from this and similar initiatives will help inform TfL’s longer-term approach to revenue protection, including future investment decisions relating to gate line infrastructure and other fare evasion reduction measures.
“TfL also continues to engage with transport authorities and operators both within the UK and internationally to monitor emerging technologies, innovative enforcement approaches and developments in gate line infrastructure, ensuring that TfL remains informed by industry best practice when considering future interventions.”
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