Almost one in 20 people fare dodge on Tube and it’s costing TfL millions
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TfL staff racially abused and spat on by fare dodgers
- Fare dodging is costing Transport for London (TfL) £130m annually, which the local government body says could be used for maintenance on the network.
- Almost 5 per cent of fares go unpaid, contributing to price increases for other customers.
- TfL has deployed 500 enforcement officers to combat fare evasion, but many officers face violence and racial abuse, with nearly 10,500 reports of work-related aggression made by TfL staff in 2023/24.
- TfL’s director of security, policing and enforcement Siwan Hayward said officers reported being “sworn at, spat at [and] pushed”.
- Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick recently confronted fare dodgers, facing verbal abuse and a threat from someone claiming to carry a knife.