Bus passengers in York were warned – now the first fare dodgers have been found and fined.
As promised, First York has sent a team of revenue protection officers (RPO) onto its services and already teenagers have been fined for travelling on a child ticket.
And already three people travelling with the wrong ticket have been found and fined £50.
First York operations manager Tom Donnelly said: “Our revenue protection officers will be regularly riding on our bus network to ensure everyone is travelling with a valid, correctly issued ticket.
“In York we had three people travelling on child tickets. They were aged 16/17 and had purchsed the ticket from the driver. They were issued with the £50 penalty charge.”
He said that by and large 90% of customers were honest and paid the right fare, “and I think we do provide a good value service”.
First York has asked passengers to have their ticket ready to show – this might be:
- A valid printed ticket for your journey
- A valid ticket on the First Bus App
- A valid smartcard
- Your Senior Bus Pass or Blind and Disabled Pass
- The credit/debit card or the contactless device you used for Tap on Tap off journeys
- Any other valid travel document.
A First York spokesperson added: “You must also be ready to show any ID associated with your travel ticket, for example your student ID, YOzone 11-16 or YOzone 16-18.
“If you’re unable to show a valid ticket to travel or the required ID for your ticket our Revenue Protection Officers will issue a standard fare charge of £50.”
More on this on the First York website.