North Yorkshire fare dodgers warned as Government's new £100 penalty comes into force on Northern trains

Anyone caught travelling on-board one of the train operator’s 2,500 services a day without a valid ticket or ‘promise to pay’ notice will be issued with the penalty fare, which is reduced to £50 if paid within 21 days.

Since 2005, the penalty fare has been just £20 – but it was felt by the industry that that figure was too low and was no longer an effective deterrent to would-be fare evaders.

As part of the government’s public consultation, 69% of respondents agreed the £20 penalty fare was too low.

Money raised through penalty fares issued by Northern - which operates services across Scarborough, Whitby, Harrogate and other part of the north - will be re-invested in the rail industry to improve the service offered to all customers.

Industry body, the Rail Delivery Group (RDG) estimates that every year around £240m is lost through fare evasion on Great Britain’s railways.

Mark Powles, commercial and customer director at Northern, said: “The overwhelming majority of our customers – upwards of 95% - do the right thing and buy a ticket before they board one of our services.

“However, fare dodgers will find themselves having to dig deep if they continue to try and travel without buying a ticket.

"The £100 penalty fare is a government initiative that Northern and other train operators in England will begin to enforce from today.

“With more ways than ever before to buy a ticket – be it online, through an app, at a self-service machine or ticket office – there really is no excuse.

"It is, however, totally avoidable for everyone who travels responsibly on our network.”

Last week, Northern issued a final call to students to buy their Under 16 Education Season Tickets before the new penalty fare took effect.

Northern’s new timetable came into effect in December and all customers, especially those who have made regular journeys on specific train times, can use the new 'Check My Timetable' feature on Northern’s website to see changes specific to their local station.