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All the city’s underground stations are busy once a game finishes, with thousands of United fans using the Metro to get home, and Nexus wants to catch out fare dodgers who try and take advantage of that. From 4.45pm until 5.45pm on Saturday, January 21, Metro ticket examiners will be conducting barrier checks at Monument, Haymarket, St James and Central station. Director of Metro Ken Mackay said: “The Metro is extremely busy on match days in Newcastle but that’s no excuse to ride the system without a ticket. “The vast majority of travellers buy tickets but we want to catch those who try and take the risk to prove that they’ll be caught and that fare evasion is doesn’t pay.” Shoppers and other Metro users are being advised to avoid joining trains at city centre stations during the post-match period. Information boards at stations are being used to advise passengers. A normal ticket checking programme will be in place during the rest of the weekend. The past 18 months has seen a continued fall in fraud on Metro, thanks to tactics including an increase in the penalty fare to £20, a strategy of targeted blitzes at stations, and an extra person employed by Nexus to prosecute fare dodgers. Last year Nexus recovered a record £406,000 in fines and costs as a result. NOTES
Over the past 18 months Nexus has been winning the battle on fare evasion on the Metro system. Fare evasion is now five percent and Nexus aims to reduce it further. A private security firm provides 1,500 hours a week of ticket inspections; police and our own staff also check tickets. We use targeted ‘blitzes’ at stations, we’ve increased the penalty fare to £20 and taken on an extra person to prosecute fare dodgers – last year we recovered a record £406,000 in fines and costs as a result.
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