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.