Those who try to evade paying fares on Auckland’s public transport system may be looking at coughing up fines of up to $500, the city’s transport authority has announced.
From 18 June, transport officers will be able issue infringement notices to passengers who fail to tag on with their AT HOP card or are found without a ticket while using services.
Offenders who are caught will be looking at infringement fees of $150, or, if they choose to challenge the fee in court (and lose), a fine of up to $500.
Auckland Transport’s transport compliance manager Logan Christian said the $2 to $3 million a year lost in fare evading places an extra burden on ratepayers and taxpayers who currently subsidise half the cost of travel.
“This is not about revenue gathering, this is about making it fair for everyone who uses public transport,” Christian said.
“We want this to be a deterrent, we don’t want to have to issue these infringements, we just want everyone to pay for the services they use. If you use an HOP card, it’s cheap to travel on public transport, so there really is no excuse not to pay your fair share.”
AT’s transport officers began patrolling the train network late last year, when the new role was created. Each holds a warrant from the Commissioner of Police as enforcement officers.
The officers currently work on the Western and Onehunga Lines, with the expectation that their service will spread across the network as more individuals are hired to fill the role. An eventual 230 are expected to be hired and to gradually take over from 168 train managers currently working across Auckland’s trains.