TfL fare evasion checks have increased across London’s transport network, with new figures showing more ticket checks, more penalty fares and a rise in prosecutions.
The number of contactless payment cards checked by enforcement officers rose by more than 50 per cent in the last year, while penalty fares increased by nearly 10 per cent.
Transport for London said fare evasion deprives the network of vital income and has set a target to reduce fare evasion to below 1.5 per cent by 2030/31.
Enforcement officers checked 6.9 million contactless payment cards during 2025/26, a 50.6 per cent increase on the previous year.
The transport authority also issued 69,001 penalty fares, up nine per cent, and 21,533 Irregularity Reports for possible prosecution, an 18.7 per cent rise.
Bus passengers also checked
Around 3.3 million bus passengers were checked during the year, around 400,000 more than the previous year.
The latest annual figures show the fare evasion rate on buses stood at 2.6 per cent at the end of 2025/26.
Across all TfL services, fare evasion is currently estimated to cost around £190 million per year.
Figures show the overall fare evasion rate across TfL services was 3.5 per cent at the end of 2025/26. The rate was 2.6 per cent on buses, 5 per cent on London Underground and 7.3 per cent on trams.
TfL said it is using data-led enforcement to target fare evasion hotspots and parts of the network where payment irregularities are repeatedly identified.
The transport authority said the approach is intended to make enforcement more visible while protecting fare income used to run and improve services.
More enforcement officers planned
TfL plans to increase the number of Transport Support and Enforcement Officers patrolling the network by 50 officers.
The current number of officers has already increased from 503 to 579 over the last five years.
The additional officers will support more checks across the network and will be partly funded through TfL’s use of newly accredited enforcement officers, who can refuse entry and remove people from stations.
The move forms part of a wider strategy to tackle fare evasion, antisocial behaviour and work-related violence and aggression against frontline staff.
There were 14,406 convictions for fare evasion in 2025/26, which is 965 more than the previous year. Court awards also rose by 24.6 per cent to £2.6 million.
Siwan Hayward, TfL’s Director of Security, Policing and Enforcement, said the overwhelming majority of customers pay the correct fare and that it was unfair for a minority to avoid paying.
She said: “Fare evasion is not a victimless crime. It robs Londoners of vital investment in a safe, frequent and reliable transport network.”
TfL said it is strengthening enforcement across the network, including through more customer ticket checks, more officers on the ground and higher levels of revenue recovered.
The figures come alongside wider TfL safety work, including new safety standards for London buses.
