New Zealand minister for transport Simon Bridges says new laws will clamp down on public transport users who deliberately avoid paying fares.
A $150 infringement fee, or a maximum $500 fine upon conviction, currently apply to fare evaders – but only police officers are able to enforce those penalties.
Bridges, transport minister under prime minister John Key since October last year, wants to give councils the ability to appoint warranted enforcement officers who will have powers to:
- Ask passengers to provide evidence they have paid a fare
- Ask passengers to advise their name, address and date of birth if they cannot produce evidence of a valid ticket
- Advise the passenger to get off the public transport service
A new $1000 fine upon conviction would apply to those who fail to comply with an enforcement officer’s directions to provide details, or fail to leave the service when directed.
Bridges said the enforcement officers would still be able to call on police for assistance in challenging situations, but the need for this would be significantly reduced under the new measures.
He said the planned changes will be made to the Land Transport Act in 2016.
“Auckland Transport raised the issues around fare evasion with me,” Bridges explained.
“It has been good to work constructively with them to help ensure public transport is a success in our biggest city.”
According to the minister’s statistics, evasion on public transport could be as high as 6% of journeys, translating to about $2 million of lost revenue every year on Auckland’s rail network alone. “Without action, these numbers could rise further,” he said.
“Left unchecked evasion of fares increases the costs of public transport for paying passengers as well as taxpayers and ratepayers who subsidise the services. In doing so it undermines the integrity of the ticketing systems used and the effectiveness of public transport generally.
“While these changes will be of immediate use in Auckland especially on rail, they will also help in other parts of New Zealand – and on other modes of transport such as buses – over time.”
Auckland mayor Len Brown welcomed the proposed changes.
“An estimated 6% of passengers evade fares and that has a negative effect on revenue and the provision of services,” Brown said. “I suspect the $2m per annum figure is conservative – it could be much more.”
Brown suggested the sheer number of fare evaders meant public transport patronage figures were being under-recorded.
“Recorded public transport patronage has exceeded 80 million trips for the first time, with annual rail patronage up 22.7 per cent to 14.4 million,” he said.
“However actual patronage will be much higher and it’s crucial we have accurate figures so we can properly plan for future service and infrastructure requirements.”
Brown said fare evasion was often accompanied by anti-social behaviour. “This initiative will help deal with those who don’t value community assets or respect the rights of fellow passengers,” he explained.
Auckland Transport chairman Dr Lester Levy also welcomed the move, saying the operator is pleased to be able to deal with the issue of people “stealing from ratepayers” through fare evasion.