Rail firms and government move to curb digital ticket fraud schemes

South Western Railway and GTR, which runs Thameslink and Southern, have rolled out measures that force passengers on certain lines to obtain a paper ticket from a machine, aiming to curb the short-faring scam where riders buy a cheap digital ticket for only the final leg of their journey. Operators say up to 95% of tickets on some short routes were being misused. The crackdown also addresses quick scanning, tailgating and "donutting", a method that splits a journey into two cheap tickets.

The Department for Transport reports rail fraud drains about £400m each year and is piloting a phone-based fare-calculation app in the East Midlands and Yorkshire, with plans to extend it under Great British Railways. Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander highlighted the illegal nature of fare evasion and announced £33m for new or improved ticket gates at identified hotspots.