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ScotRail to charge ticket dodgers £10 minimum fare
ScotRail will enforce a £10 minimum fare to reduce fare evasion costing over £11 million annually, with exemptions and a three-month education period before July 2026.
- ScotRail will introduce a £10 minimum fare from July 2026 after a three-month education campaign starting April 1, 2026, targeting passengers who deliberately board without a valid ticket.
- ScotRail says fare evasion costs Scotland’s Railway more than £10 m each year, with 74% having open ticket offices and 90% access to vending machines but choosing not to use them.
- ScotRail has strengthened enforcement since 2022, with its revenue protection team recovering around £2m annually and applying exemptions for national entitlement card holders and others, while staff retain discretion and offer a 'promise to pay' option for cash customers.
- On shorter trips the charge will exceed normal fares; for example, a Bishopbriggs to Glasgow Queen Street return costing £3 would incur the £10 charge, which ScotRail says will deter deliberate evasion and reduce anti‑social behaviour.
- Ticketless travel has fallen from 8.8% to 3.7% since April 2022, the Scottish Government has backed the move, and Transport Secretary Fiona Hyslop said around 95% of passengers already travel with a valid ticket.
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12 Articles
12 Articles
ScotRail to Introduce £10 Minimum Fare to Tackle Ticketless Travel
ScotRail will introduce a new £10 minimum fare for passengers who deliberately board trains without buying a ticket, in a move aimed at reducing fare evasion across Scotland’s Railway. Fare evasion is estimated to cost more than £11 million each year, money which the operator says could otherwise be reinvested into services. Under the new policy, passengers who intentionally travel without a valid ticket will be charged a £10 minimum fare. In ma…
Coverage Details
Total News Sources12
Leaning Left3Leaning Right1Center5Last UpdatedBias Distribution56% Center
Bias Distribution
- 56% of the sources are Center
56% Center
L 33%
C 56%
11%
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