Sarah Olney, who is competing to become the Liberal Democrat candidate for Mayor of London, has pledged to crack down on fare dodgers and barrier jumpers on the capital's transport network if elected in 2028.
The MP for Richmond Park said she would commission an independent review to "reveal the true scale of fare evasion" and pilot more secure gates to make it harder for people to use public transport without paying.
Accusation Against the Mayor
She accused the Labour Mayor of London, Lord Sadiq Khan, of being "asleep at the wheel on fare dodging".
"Leaving gates open and unstaffed is a kick in the teeth for the vast majority of Londoners who are forced to pay the bill for those cheating the system," said Mrs Olney.
"As mayor, I would commission an independent review to reveal the true scale of fare evasion and pilot new, more secure gates to get a grip on the issue."
Cost of Fare Evasion
Barrier jumpers cost Transport for London (TfL) between £190m and £210m annually. Mrs Olney has demanded an independent audit of how the network estimates fare evasion as part of a six-point plan to reduce the problem. She claimed it is particularly bad on the tram network across Croydon, Sutton and Wimbledon.
TfL has insisted it is working towards meeting its target of an evasion rate of no more than 1.5%.
National Attention and Next Steps
The issue gained national prominence last year when Robert Jenrick, then Conservative shadow justice secretary before his defection to Reform UK, filmed himself confronting suspected fare evaders at Stratford station in east London. During the stunt, he said he was threatened with a knife by one of the alleged offenders and stated he saw eight police officers ignoring the problem with ticket barriers left open.
Mrs Olney has called on officials to pilot taller gates at the 20 stations with the highest evasion rates, using funding from the Department for Transport's £33m gate line programme announced in the summer. In July, Lord Khan confirmed that TfL would monitor the performance of new-style ticket barriers at High Wycombe to "better understand their effectiveness in deterring fare evasion and improving revenue protection outcomes".
The Liberal Democrats came third in the 2024 mayoral election with 5.8% of the vote, 70 votes ahead of the Green Party. Lord Khan won with 43.8%, leaving Tory candidate Susan Hall in second with just under a third of all votes cast.
Mrs Olney is one of two politicians so far competing for the 2028 Lib Dem candidacy, having confirmed her intention to run in September. Robie Blackie, who represented the party in 2024, announced last month he would seek the party's backing.
"At the last election, as mayoral candidate, I beat the Greens, the first time we had done this in a Mayoral election since 2008," said Mr Blackie on Instagram. "We can do better in 2028 – but it will need a bold campaign, focused on fixing London's police and on cheaper housing."
Sir James Cleverly, bidding to be the Tory candidate for mayor, said he can beat Labour at the next contest. The former Home Secretary told The Standard: "I am the best person to beat Khan." Conservative members in London have been given a final shortlist of three candidates: Sir James, Westminster councillor Festus Akinbusoye and former Richmond Park and North Kingston parliamentary candidate Sara Gezdari. Voting opened on Monday, with the ballot running until November 18. Lord Khan, mayor since 2016, has yet to reveal whether he intends to stand for a historic fourth term.
