As part of the government’s rail reforms, new ticket gates will be installed at stations and platforms across England, targeting frequent fare dodging locations to crack down on deliberate ticketless travel.
The £33.4 million of funding will 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 the country and on the London Underground.
Each year up to £400 million of rail revenue is at risk due to fare evasion, reducing the funding available to spend on improving services through maintaining the network, upgrading carriages, and improving Wi-Fi.
Great British Railways (GBR) are focussing on creating a fairer deal for passengers, including tackling fare evasion and simplifying ticketing to deliver more reliable and affordable services. Some of these 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 tickets, check train times and access a range of support all in one place.
The Rail Minister, Lord Peter Hendy, said that fare evasion undermines public confidence in the railway and causes passengers to lose out on millions in revenue which could instead be invested to improve services for everyone.
The new ticket gates will have options to scan digital tickets, insert paper tickets or ‘tap out’ where contactless travel is available. Earlier this year, the government announced that 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
Delivery of the new ticket gates is expected by mid-2028, with the first phase of rollout in place during the first half of 2027.