Ah so weasel words eh! "Best" practice is by definition above and beyond the standard required.
Perhaps I should have said "acceptable practice" then.
The SRA policy (note: the role of the SRA is now with the DfT) includes:
When considering a penalty fares scheme, we will first consider whether penalty fares are
appropriate, given the type of train service provided and the other ways in which that operator
could protect its revenue. A penalty fares scheme is most suited to urban or suburban train
services where most stations have ticket facilities, and where busy trains and short intervals
between stations make it impossible to check every passenger’s ticket between every stop. We
may question the need for a penalty fares scheme to cover long-distance services, where a
conductor is able to check every passenger, or rural services operated as ‘paytrains’, where
most stations are unstaffed and it is normal practice to buy tickets on board the train.
I believe Northern are likely to attempt to charge Penalty Fares in circumstances which should be "questioned", however the DfT cannot be trusted to effectively "question" these practices, and cannot be trusted to "consider" whether to allow such a scheme. It is the DfT who are actively encouraging inappropriate schemes (EMT long-distance services north of Bedford is an other example of a clearly inappropriate scheme, but the sort that the DfT enjoys inflicting on passengers).
A few other snippets worth bearing in mind include:
In deciding which trains should be penalty fares trains, an operator should take account of the geography of the train service, the ticket facilities available at the stations which will be served and
whether the area covered can be easily explained to passengers.
Will they be excluding Manchester Airport, to comply with this...?
...serves a port or airport and is used by a large number of foreign visitors and people who do
not often travel by train, making it undesirable to charge penalty fares to passengers from
this station
And will anyone be checking this?
we expect operators to provide enough ticket windows, ticket machines
and staff at staffed stations to meet the queuing standards set out in the Ticketing and
Settlement Agreement and their Passenger’s Charter under normal circumstances. This
standard is normally five minutes at peak times and three minutes at other times.
And they will almost certainly not be taking up this recommendation:
We do not recommend that large numbers of unstaffed stations are included in a penalty fares scheme.
Weasel words indeed; these should not merely be "recommendations" and the DfT or ORR should absolutely hold TOCs to account and ensure they are acting in a way that is totally appropriate.
I have seen the way Northern mistreat customers and I don't trust them to rectify their ways.
Now if someone senior at Northern can make absolute promises, great. They are welcome to post on this forum, or post assurances on their website. But until then, I will be very sceptical....