Some offenders go straight to court if the offence is serious enough, such as preparation of a fraudulent ticket, or refusing to co-operate with the inspectors, walking off then getting grabbed by plain clothes police. There is no limit to the amount of £100 "Standard Fares" (£50 if paid within 2 weeks) someone can have - not paying them is where the offence is created.
The number of station blocks has risen recently at Manchester Piccadilly. It's not deliberately been targeted, it's just handy for poor weather (roof overhead) and easier to manage, with few exits from the platform. That said, these have been rather productive, and it is interesting to find some of the tickets being used for months on trains upstairs that have been err... 'made at home', or those who thought they'd chance a free journey in the city during busy periods.
Gateway operations (station blocks) run across the whole system, as punctuality is a bit more fluid here, the whole system of stopping the vehicle usually takes a minute - tied with the normal dwell time of a vehicle at stations, done correctly it adds perhaps 40-50 seconds to the service time. Services already running considerably late sometimes get left alone to make up time. Where possible 4 staff get on, 4 on a single or 2+2 on a double, or more if staff are not 'dealing' (with passengers). Some passengers repeatedly complain about these checks, but these are mostly the ones who are regularly found minus ticket.
In dealing with the quite small minority of those who don't cooperate with staff and leave the vehicle, or walk off and fail to give details, GM Police are often on stations during station blocks. In addition BTP assist quite often at the rail station they run through. A number of Special Constables exist amongst the tram and bus operators, and TfGM bus station and office staff so, as a last resort, many teams of inspectors have someone in authority with them should it be needed.
As Metrolink continues to expand, the number of checks will rise accordingly. That said, I believe a lot of discretion and common sense is used by staff in considering whether to apply the standard fare.
