New app will ‘fact check’ Northern fare dodgers’ claims

The regular fare evaders’ excuse that a ticket machine isn’t working won’t succeed on Northern services anymore.

Train conductors and revenue protection staff can now check the status of more than 600 self-service ticket machines on the network, via an app on their mobiles. It can show them if a machine is ‘active’ and issuing tickets, providing them with crucial information in deciding whether to issue a penalty notice.

“Self-service ticket machines have been a convenient scapegoat when people are challenged as to why they don’t have a valid ticket for travel,” said Northern Customer and Commercial Director Mark Powles.

“Until now, our frontline staff have been in a difficult position when faced with this excuse, as there was always the possibility of a machine somewhere on the network being out of action. Now we can ‘fact check’ its status.”

Northern has also introduced a ‘quick buy’ feature that halves the number of buttons to be pressed to buy a ticket. Machines also give a countdown to when the next train is due, allowing passengers to work out whether they have time to catch it.