First Great Western prosecutes 13 people for travelling without train tickets

[whole diary]

[ChrisB]

From the Bath Chronicle

Train operator First Great Western has successfully prosecuted 13 people caught travelling without a valid train ticket.

All of the people were caught by officials at Bath Spa Railway Station since the beginning of 2015.

Bath Magistrates gave the majority of the people caught travelling without a valid train ticket a fine of ^400, though for some this was reduced if they entered a guilty plea to the charge.

The magistrates also ordered each person to pay varying amounts of court costs, compensation and a surcharge.

The people caught and prosecuted were;

Jake Blackmore, 18 of Middlewood Close, was ordered to pay ^603.70 for not buying a train ticket for ^3.70 to travel to Bath Spa Railway Station on February 3.

Andrew Carter, 40 of Cranbury Avenue, Southampton, was ordered to pay ^630.70 for not buying a train ticket for ^30.70 to travel to Bath Spa Railway Station on March 9.

Charlotte Cox, 19 of Grebe Close, Waterlooville, was ordered to pay ^786.90 for not buying a train ticket for ^36.90 to travel to Bath Spa Railway Station on April 17.

Elen Ekaloba, 18 of Chapel Allerton, Axbridge, was ordered to pay ^682.40 for not buying a train ticket for ^82.40 to travel to Bath Spa Railway Station on March 31.

Benjamin Fairley, 24 of Arundell Close, Westbury, was ordered to pay ^611.60 for not buying a train ticket for ^11.60 to travel to Bath Spa Railway Station on January 6.

Josh Gerrard, 18 or Sefton Road, Liverpool, was ordered to pay ^686.40 for buying a train ticket for ^84.60 to travel to Bath Spa Railway Station on February 14.

Damien Hately, 30 of Newleaze, Trowbridge, was ordered to pay ^320.30 for travelling without a valid train ticket at Oldfield Park Railway Station on January 29.

Charlotte McCarter, 46 of Oak Lane, Woking, was ordered to pay ^662 for not buying a train ticket for ^62 to travel to Bath Spa Railway Station on January 12.

Craig Morrison, 22 of Balmoral Road, Keynsham, was ordered to pay ^647.20 for not buying a train ticket for ^3.60 to travel to Oldfield Park Railway Station on February 24 and for not buying a train ticket for ^3.70 to travel to Oldfield Park Railway Station on March 3.

Natalie Routledge, 23 of Kinglsey Road, Chippenham, was ordered to pay ^615.50 for not buying a train ticket for ^15.50 to travel to Bath Spa Railway Station on March 19.

Lena Smith, 25 of Winchester Road, Aldershot, was ordered to pay ^652.60 for not buying a train ticket for ^52.60 to travel to Bath Spa Railway Station on March 30.

Robert Smith, 36 of Midford Road, Bath, was ordered to pay ^607.40 for not buying a train ticket for ^7.40 to travel to Bath Spa Railway Station on February 28.

Ion-Romica Stoica, 25 of Bodicea Mews, Hounslow, was ordered to pay ^698.50 for not buying a train ticket for ^98.50 to travel to Bath Spa Railway Station on January 19 and for not leaving the station via the automatic ticket barrier.

All of the accused were dealt with at Bath Magistrates' Court on July 15.

Interesting age groups....



(Edit by FT, N! to remove ^)

[IndustryInsider]

Just goes to prove that there is no such thing as a typical fare evader.

[chrisr_75]

When it says 'so and so was ordered to pay', does that mean the sums detailed are paid to the TOC^▸ (Train Operating Company), or are they court fines and pass to the Treasury via the courts?

[ChrisB]

I think that's the total payment - ticket cost, fine, costs, etc.

The TOC^▸ (Train Operating Company) will only get compensated for its loss. The rest to the court service.

[chrisr_75]

Thanks.

I was going to say that ^600 or so is rather in excess of what the actual loss was to the TOC^▸ (Train Operating Company), good that the rest passes to the treasury.

I notice there was one fool who got caught twice...Some people just don't get the hint, eh?!

[Timmer]

Hopefully sends out a message to those who don't pay their way on trains. Sadly I don't think it will.

[John R]

Hopefully sends out a message to those who don't pay their way on trains. Sadly I don't think it will.

Maybe a poster with those details put at each station would help get the message across. May have to change the names I suppose (to protect the guilty...), but should certainly make anyone thinking of avoiding a ^3.70 fare think twice.

[JayMac]

Posters with the real names of those found guilty of byelaw and RORA^▸ (Regulation of Railways Act 1889) offences for ticketless travel are used by many train operators. I'm not aware of FGW^▸ (First Great Western) using such posters.

The real names of those convicted can be used. No right to anonymity. 

[Chris from Nailsea]

Hmm. 

As reported by the Bath Chronicle, it seems some passengers just can't win:

Josh Gerrard, 18 or Sefton Road, Liverpool, was ordered to pay ^686.40 for buying a train ticket for ^84.60 to travel to Bath Spa Railway Station on February 14.

What did he actually do wrong, then? 

[grahame]

Hmm. 

Josh Gerrard, 18 or Sefton Road, Liverpool, was ordered to pay ^686.40 for buying a train ticket for ^84.60 to travel to Bath Spa Railway Station on February 14.

What did he actually do wrong, then? 

Stayed on to Trowbridge?   

[Chris from Nailsea]

Would that have been picked up by staff at Bath Spa?

All of the people were caught by officials at Bath Spa Railway Station since the beginning of 2015.

[chrisr_75]

Hmm. 

As reported by the Bath Chronicle, it seems some passengers just can't win:

Josh Gerrard, 18 or Sefton Road, Liverpool, was ordered to pay ^686.40 for buying a train ticket for ^84.60 to travel to Bath Spa Railway Station on February 14.

What did he actually do wrong, then? 

That's a curious one, NR^» (Network Rail - home page) Enquiries suggests a single off peak fare from Liverpool Lime Street (I m making an assumption that's where the journey started) to Bath Spa is ^81.90, so I would be interested to find out what he did wrong and quite why it resulted in a conviction...

[sprinterguard]

It's clearly a typo. 

[plymothian]

The journalist forgot to type the word 'not'?

[Chris from Nailsea]

It's clearly a typo. 

The journalist forgot to type the word 'not'?

Yes, that was my suspicion, too: journalists, eh? 

If that was the case, it's interesting that Mr Gerrard seems to have travelled all the way from Liverpool to Bath Spa without his apparent lack of a ticket being picked up previously, somewhere along the line ...