Holiday for fare dodgers as TfL delays fines rise

Fare dodgers on the Tube and buses are enjoying a seven-week holiday from increased fines after Transport for London failed to put up warning notices in time.

Penalty fares should have increased from £50 to £80 across all TfL public transport from January 2, the same day ticket prices shot up by nearly six per cent.

This now won't come into force until February 19, TfL confirmed today. A spokesman said: "We have to paste signs warning of the increase. These include two signs in each Tube carriage and two on each bus. For the buses alone that means 16,000 signs."

Official papers, signed and dated by the Mayor on November 29, state: "From 2 January 2012 it is proposed to increase the penalty fares on all TfL services, as listed above, to £80 (reduced to £40 if paid within 21 days)."

TfL could now lose tens of thousands of pounds as a result of the delay at a time of stringent cost cutting. Caroline Pidgeon, leader of the London Assembly's Lib-Dem group and chairwoman of the Assembly's transport committee, who raised the delay, said: "Tackling fare evasion is supposed to be a key objective of the Mayor so why has he allowed a key policy to be delayed for almost two months?

"At a time when the Mayor is hiking up fares for honest passengers it is totally wrong the Mayor is failing to take decisive action against those who are playing the system." She added that TfL had "more than enough time" to implement the policy and produce the signs.

Plans for £80 penalty fares were revealed by the Standard in August.

Anyone suspected of deliberately avoiding paying the correct fare faces prosecution with court fines of up to £1,000 and a criminal record, depending on the nature of the offence.

Fare evasion during 2010/11 totalled £75 million - a three year high. This included £40 million lost on London's buses and £20 million on the Tube.