Although primarily related to stations with barriers, there are potentially fraudulent uses if it were free to tap in and out again at the same station, and I presume this extends to stations without barriers and more than one entry/exit.
I still call it Warwick Road, at least to myself, because I spent hours waiting at platform 4 at Oxford Road when there was a frequent service to Altrincham and the litany of station names from the announcer is burned into my brain irrevocably ..... "Deansgate, Old Trafford, Warwick Road, Stretford, Dane Road, Sale ......".
Guildford certainly used to have a public right of way across the bridge. They used to issue special tickets to allow the user in/out at the other end. I don't think money had to change hands, though.
Some examples I can think of different types:
There aren’t any barriers at Sheffield and there is only one footbridge.
There is only one footbridge in the station itself, but there is another footbridge that goes over the station for public use
I think bridge passes (as they're known) are still used at Guildford. The signs about the extent of their validity are certainly still there (they're valid via bridge but not subway).
I think it’s still there, but could be wrong. Behind the Q-park, goes up and over the south end of the platforms.
Isn't that second footbridge closed off due to being unsafe?
Maybe that’s the answer then - present but closed off?
It was discussed on the forum before, the footbridge at Guildford was not and is not a public right of way, but public access across the station via the footbridge results from an agreement associated with planning permission.
At Stevenage and Welwyn Garden City the footbridges are available for use as pedestrian walking routes. At Stevenage there is one gateline on the bridge, at Welwyn Garden City there are two gatelines, one on each island platform. In both cases the lifts at footbridge level are outside the gateline(s).
There used to be something similar in Swindon too, particularly important if you were visiting certain Government offices there.
The system was deliberately set up like this to dissuade people touching in and then immediately touching out, travelling for free to their unbarreriered destination.
It's been suspended since Covid though. To ensure social distancing on the bridge.
Would this behaviour not be picked up by the gateline staff? Someone tapping out but not leaving would look rather suspicious
But there are enough paid-side interchanges with DLR, overground, or other national rail services, that there are still numerous destinations (other than LU) that don‘t have barriers within the zones, and then there’s the wider area outside the zones...
