The rapid rise of fare dodging in Switzerland

[wellhouse]

An interesting read;

"In 2024, more than 1 million cases of fare evasion were recorded in Switzerland, reported RTS. The number has more than doubled since 2019. Why? Data published by the public transport association Alliance Swisspass offer clues."

The rapid rise of fare dodging in Switzerland

In 2024, more than 1 million cases of fare evasion were recorded in Switzerland, reported RTS. The number has more than doubled since 2019. Why? Data published by the public transport association Alli

lenews.ch

 

[Porty]

An interesting read;

"In 2024, more than 1 million cases of fare evasion were recorded in Switzerland, reported RTS. The number has more than doubled since 2019. Why? Data published by the public transport association Alliance Swisspass offer clues."

The rapid rise of fare dodging in Switzerland

In 2024, more than 1 million cases of fare evasion were recorded in Switzerland, reported RTS. The number has more than doubled since 2019. Why? Data published by the public transport association Alli

lenews.ch

Quite a good read - just back from a week in Germany and (German speaking) Switzerland. Yes, the idea that people can be trusted, and they generally obey rules seems to be the norm in Germany/Switzerland. The classic case being the inability for a pedestrian to cross a road with a red light showing, despite no vehicles in sight.

I was intending to put up a post on the Infrastructure heading about fencing of railway tracks. On my last couple of days I realised that lots of track is unfenced, even at the edge of towns and villages and not just in open country. In the country no livestock were present in fields! Presumably the public are trusted not to go on to the tracks. It must save an awful lot of capital and maintenance costs.

 

[nwales58]

. lots of track is unfenced, even at the edge of towns and villages and not just in open country. In the country no livestock were present in fields!

Wrong. See later.

It's roughly the same as here, the farmer is responsible for keeping livestock off railways and roads.

The difference is that we rely on permanent fencing. Germanland instead often uses temporary electric fences and keeps moving the animals around what we would think of as a single field to even out the grazing.

 

[AlterEgo]

A strange article which asks a question it goes out of its way to avoid answering. The closest we get is “someone at a ticket selling company thinks there is more risk taking” without even including a quote or explanation from said person.

Incredible piece of writing which says nothing about its own premise!

 

[yorksrob]

The accepted correlation that "fare paying passengers end up paying for non-fare paying ones" mentioned in the article seems ever more stretched.

This forum attests to the ever more stringent clamp downs on fare evasion in this country with seemingly no effect on ever rising fares and declining value for money.

 

[DeverseSam]

They are also increasingly strict on buying a ticket seconds after departure, which looks like fare evasion in the stats but it isn’t fare evasion as we know it

 

[Bletchleyite]

They are also increasingly strict on buying a ticket seconds after departure, which looks like fare evasion in the stats but it isn’t fare evasion as we know it

It's seen as fare evasion in the UK as well (because it's usually seen as buying a ticket when you see the inspector). There have been several cases in Disputes and Prosecutions about it.

 

[rg177]

It will also vary depending on the region. A guard on a Brig - Bern service last year said to me that her colleagues who work local services around Geneva and Lausanne deal with considerably more fare evasion and poor behaviour in general. Indeed, that morning, I'd taken a service from Nyon to Lausanne in First Class and the majority of passengers in my carriage were found to be ticketless or with a Standard Class ticket by a gaggle of inspectors.

 

[Bletchleyite]

It will also vary depending on the region. A guard on a Brig - Bern service last year said to me that her colleagues who work local services around Geneva and Lausanne deal with considerably more fare evasion and poor behaviour in general. Indeed, that morning, I'd taken a service from Nyon to Lausanne in First Class and the majority of passengers in my carriage were found to be ticketless or with a Standard Class ticket by a gaggle of inspectors.

Does make me wonder if SBB will consider moving to become a gated system, at least at major stations. It does a lot for both ticketless travel and antisocial behaviour - the difference between (mostly gated) TfL and (mostly not gated at least at night) Southeastern or Manchester suburbans (for instance) is quite stark. After all Nederlandse Spoorwegen went from fully ungated to mostly gated in a very short period of time.

 

[geordieblue]

The accepted correlation that "fare paying passengers end up paying for non-fare paying ones" mentioned in the article seems ever more stretched.

This forum attests to the ever more stringent clamp downs on fare evasion in this country with seemingly no effect on ever rising fares and declining value for money.

Well then who else is paying for non-fare payers?

 

[rvdborgt]

After all Nederlandse Spoorwegen went from fully ungated to mostly gated in a very short period of time.

"mostly" in the sense that most passengers will encounter at least one gate during their journeys. Most stations (around 80%) still don't have gates. And I'm not so sure it actually prevents fare dodging significantly.

 

[Bletchleyite]

"mostly" in the sense that most passengers will encounter at least one gate during their journeys. Most stations (around 80%) still don't have gates. And I'm not so sure it actually prevents fare dodging significantly.

Why would it be different in the Netherlands vs. the UK, where it does prevent a lot of casual fare dodging?

 

[rvdborgt]

Why would it be different in the Netherlands vs. the UK, where it does prevent a lot of casual fare dodging?

Because there's often no staff at or near the gates. Fare dodgers can (and do) jump the gates, or follow closely behind someone else. Watch any gateline at a bigger station for a few minutes are you'll see it.
I've yet to see any comparison between before and after installing the gates.

 

[bahnause]

Does make me wonder if SBB will consider moving to become a gated system, at least at major stations

The official position: Access barriers are not an option. The public transport system should be open and remain open.

They would be unworkable due to the existing infrastructure and timetabling. Fortunately, the prevailing pragmatism prevents solutions that are worse than the problem.

 

[geoffk]

Last year I came across quite a harsh penalty for what appeared to be an genuine mistake. I was on a Swiss tour with around 20 others and a ticket examiner came round between Lausanne and Fribourg. One tour member had entered the wrong date on his InterRail ticket and then altered it, which is stated to be against the rules. After a lot of discussion his ticket was confiscated with two days remaining and he had to buy new tickets - Vevey to Koblenz that day and the following day Koblenz to Brussels. The ticket examiner was polite throughout but firm in his decision. Altogether we had 25 train journeys of varying length (excluding Eurostar) and tickets were checked on only 7 occasions, of which 3 were in Belgium or Germany!

 

[The exile]

It will also vary depending on the region. A guard on a Brig - Bern service last year said to me that her colleagues who work local services around Geneva and Lausanne deal with considerably more fare evasion and poor behaviour in general. Indeed, that morning, I'd taken a service from Nyon to Lausanne in First Class and the majority of passengers in my carriage were found to be ticketless or with a Standard Class ticket by a gaggle of inspectors.

One wonders whether there is a cultural difference between different areas of Switzerland (treading on egg-shells here!).

 

[AlterEgo]

One wonders whether there is a cultural difference between different areas of Switzerland (treading on egg-shells here!).

The article explains there is a cultural difference, although does not explain why fare dodging is getting higher. Switzerland has been next to Germany and France for a very long time and there have been cultural differences for a very long time!

 

[rvdborgt]

Last year I came across quite a harsh penalty for what appeared to be an genuine mistake. I was on a Swiss tour with around 20 others and a ticket examiner came round between Lausanne and Fribourg. One tour member had entered the wrong date on his InterRail ticket and then altered it, which is stated to be against the rules. After a lot of discussion his ticket was confiscated with two days remaining and he had to buy new tickets - Vevey to Koblenz that day and the following day Koblenz to Brussels. The ticket examiner was polite throughout but firm in his decision.

That's the worst thing you can do with a paper Interrail. In case you made an honest mistake, don't alter it, but go to a member of staff.
I once wrote 01/02 on my paper Interrail instead of 02/01. I did notice it in the 2nd train but left it untouched. 1 Swiss ticket inspector made a remark but could laugh about it and saw it as an honest mistake, which was clear because that dat was still a month away.

 

[Bletchleyite]

One wonders whether there is a cultural difference between different areas of Switzerland (treading on egg-shells here!).

In any country you get more crime in larger towns/cities than in rural areas. You can leave your front door unlocked in a typical rural Scottish village, you couldn't in Glasgow, say (no bias against Glasgow there, just picked two Scottish places).

Switzerland has nowhere *that* big but Geneva and Zuerich aren't exactly small.

They would be unworkable due to the existing infrastructure and timetabling

Not sure what timetabling has to do with gatelines?

 

[DanielB]

Because there's often no staff at or near the gates. Fare dodgers can (and do) jump the gates, or follow closely behind someone else. Watch any gateline at a bigger station for a few minutes are you'll see it.
I've yet to see any comparison between before and after installing the gates.

Sometimes you'd also be able to see in on TV. There have been several TV programs following amongst others the ticket inspectors at RET for example (whose metro system has gates at, if I'm not mistaken, all stations. And it's always surprising how many fare dodgers still are caught there (with a popular route being the elevator which sometimes is outside the gateline in Rotterdam)

NS also had massive problems with people providing QR-code type tickets via Facebook and people buying a ticket with 40% discount (meant for subscription holders who can take up to three others with discount with them) despite not travelling together with anyone.
Those are all people technically having a ticket (so then can pass trough gates without any issue), but who are still fare dodgers.

 

[Bletchleyite]

Sometimes you'd also be able to see in on TV. There have been several TV programs following amongst others the ticket inspectors at RET for example (whose metro system has gates at, if I'm not mistaken, all stations. And it's always surprising how many fare dodgers still are caught there (with a popular route being the elevator which sometimes is outside the gateline in Rotterdam)

NS also had massive problems with people providing QR-code type tickets via Facebook and people buying a ticket with 40% discount (meant for subscription holders who can take up to three others with discount with them) despite not travelling together with anyone.
Those are all people technically having a ticket (so then can pass trough gates without any issue), but who are still fare dodgers.

The UK has plenty of this sort of thing e.g. child tickets, Railcards etc. But it remains the case that having gates does make the very common "I'll pay if someone asks me to do so, otherwise I won't" or "pay when challenged" passenger cough up - and even if they get a child ticket or similar they've at least paid *something* and potentially set up an audit trail of stuff to get them on.

UK investment in gates has been huge so it clearly pays. I don't get why NL or CH would be different.

 

[185143]

Does make me wonder if SBB will consider moving to become a gated system, at least at major stations. It does a lot for both ticketless travel and antisocial behaviour - the difference between (mostly gated) TfL and (mostly not gated at least at night) Southeastern or Manchester suburbans (for instance) is quite stark. After all Nederlandse Spoorwegen went from fully ungated to mostly gated in a very short period of time.

I'm sure I'm not the only forum member to have seen plenty of people brazenly barge through LU ticket gates, knowingly in full view of LU staff, who they no doubt know are told not to intervene.

 

[Bletchleyite]

I'm sure I'm not the only forum member to have seen plenty of people brazenly barge through LU ticket gates, knowingly in full view of LU staff, who they no doubt know are told not to intervene.

It happens. But the point is that there are plenty who are deterred by it.

 

[alex17595]

I went to Swizterland a couple of weeks ago and had my ticket checked on all but the busiest of trains.

The SBB double decker each had a team of 3 or 4 people checking tickets. Even the private narrow gauge concerns had plenty of ticket checks, I took a Zentral Bahn train from Luzern to Interlaken and there was a team of 2 or 3 inspectors on there.

 

[rvdborgt]

The UK has plenty of this sort of thing e.g. child tickets, Railcards etc. But it remains the case that having gates does make the very common "I'll pay if someone asks me to do so, otherwise I won't" or "pay when challenged" passenger cough up - and even if they get a child ticket or similar they've at least paid *something* and potentially set up an audit trail of stuff to get them on.

UK investment in gates has been huge so it clearly pays. I don't get why NL or CH would be different.

The difference being that in the UK, closed gates always have staff present. In the Netherlands, this is often not the case. I agree that some potential fare dodgers will probably pay something, but as I wrote, I have yet to see any before/after comparison of fare dodging and then a comparison of the costs of the gates with the decrease in fare dodging (if any). It's as if they don't want the public to know what that looks like and I wonder why.

 

[DanielB]

The difference being that in the UK, closed gates always have staff present. In the Netherlands, this is often not the case.

I doubt however how effective regular gateline staff is. But security staff, with a bit more training and options to do something, may help.
At my local station Amersfoort Centraal the NS security staff tend to be hiding behind the ticket machines (out of sight from the gateline) and regularly catch fare dodgers.
But for fake E-tickets only regular checks on trains really help as these don't result in suspicious behaviour at the gates.

So gates aren't really a magical formula to avoid fare dodging. Though they may make it more visible for staff.

 

[johncrossley]

The difference being that in the UK, closed gates always have staff present. In the Netherlands, this is often not the case.

There are a few where you show the ticket to a camera if there is no staff present if you have a problem getting through the gate. This is usually where they have two entrances where one has a staffed gate. But I think there always has to be staff at at least one of the entrances. In the Netherlands there are completely unstaffed stations with gates which wouldn't be allowed in the UK.

 

[rvdborgt]

There are a few where you show the ticket to a camera if there is no staff present if you have a problem getting through the gate. This is usually where they have two entrances where one has a staffed gate. But I think there always has to be staff at at least one of the entrances. In the Netherlands there are completely unstaffed stations with gates which wouldn't be allowed in the UK.

All Dutch stations have an "information column" with a button on it to contact remote staff. At a gateline, this column will be located near the wide gate. I think they'll also have a camera but you typically just ask the gate to be opened if your ticket won't work at the gate, without showing anything.

 

[185]

In a middle sized station, whilst chatting to Japanese managers from JR East about fare evasion, a place with near 100% of people paying, someone actually jumped the gates right infront of us. The guy on the barrier stood next to us, looked puzzled, asking if this was staged, but I assured him it was not - it was just some local kid. Absolutely priceless. In fairness the response to this fare evader was akin to a counterterrorism police rugby tackle, guessing they don't get so many of them, but just proves the point, wherever the railway goes, so do the fare dodgers.

 

[Bletchleyite]

In a middle sized station, whilst chatting to Japanese managers from JR East about fare evasion, a place with near 100% of people paying, someone actually jumped the gates right infront of us. The guy on the barrier stood next to us, looked puzzled, asking if this was staged, but I assured him it was not - it was just some local kid. Absolutely priceless. In fairness the response to this fare evader was akin to a counterterrorism police rugby tackle, guessing they don't get so many of them, but just proves the point, wherever the railway goes, so do the fare dodgers.

Japanese gates are normally defaulted to open and close if your ticket isn't valid or you don't insert one. I once did push through one - the way we were using the system we were buying the cheapest ticket and using the "adjust" machine (basically an excess) to pay up to the correct fare before exiting - this is a bit simpler than trying to understand the fares and is generally how tourists were traditionally advised to do it.

However what we had done was gone in and ridden round a loop, exiting at the same station, something it couldn't cope with and it wouldn't take the excess fare. With no staff visible there was no option but to push through as the machine wouldn't take any extra fare - I did think someone would come out of a door somewhere and stop me, but nobody was there and nothing happened aside from a loud alarm that we presumed was intended to embarrass any evader into not doing it, a bit like how a burglar alarm works.

We had every intention of paying (and thought it would just excess up to the maximum from that station) but it just wasn't a scenario the system had been designed for. (Oyster by contrast does charge a fare and let you out if you do a same station exit e.g. if you go all the way round the Circle Line, I seem to recall it's different depending on how long you leave it).