I have to agree with some of the guys here, zero tolerance is ok for DART and Commuter services, but for Intercity a different approach is needed. Take the Rosslare train for instance, genuine cases like this do not get fines as the ticket checker can exchange the ticket for the correct one the customer was looking for, while fare evaders get caught and forced to buy the correct ticket they tried to avoid buying or face the fine. Same policy in most of Europe. Simple but works brilliantly, I've never seen or heard of any problems on the Rosslare line.
Ticket checker:
Fare evaders = none, all passengers have tickets
customers with correct ticket/incorrect ticket exchanged for a new one = all
loss of revenue to the company as a result of this policy = none
customers receiving a good customer service with a staff member who fixes problems rather then penalising people for them = all
bad pr for the company as a result of genuine cases like this = none
number of people (and their family & friends) who will never travel by train again = none
Overall: satisfied customers with correct ticket type and all revenue accounted for.
RPU zero tolerance policy:
Fare evaders = some, not caught as not all trains inspected
customers with correct ticket/incorrect ticket exchanged for a new one = most people have correct ticket, but no tickets exchanged in genuine cases like this (fine issued instead in a "you have no ticket you pay a fine" attitude)
loss of revenue to the company as a result of this policy = some
customers receiving a good customer service with a staff member who fixes problems rather then penalising people for them = none, all passengers penalised rather then helped to resolve problems, and some RPU won't even answer customers questions
bad pr for the company as a result of genuine cases like this = many cases
number of people (and their family & friends) who will never travel by train again = many cases
Overall: many intimidated and pissed off customers, and some loss of revenue to the company. Some revenue coming from fines to genuine cases rather then fare evaders.
Need I say any more?
P.S. I'm using the words "fare evader" for someone who intends to defraud the company, and "genuine cases" for cases such as this where a mistake was made on the company's behalf or the customer's behalf.
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