Commuters may soon face fines of up to $500 if they don't pay for their bus or train fares.
- Auckland Transport accidentally tells 16,641 students their HOP concessions are no longer valid
- Price hikes for most Auckland train, buses
From June 18, transport officers on trains, buses and ferries will issue infringement notices to passengers who haven't tagged on with their AT HOP card or bought a ticket.
The automatic fees will be $150. If offenders choose to go to court instead of paying the fee, there will be a fine of up to $500.
According to Auckland Transport, fare evasion costs between $2 million and $3 million a year.
Transport compliance manager Logan Christian says he hopes this will be a deterrent for fare evaders.
"If you use a HOP card, it's cheap to travel on public transport, so there really is no excuse not to pay your fair share."
Transport officers, who hold a warrant from the Commissioner of Police, began working on the train network late last year. They currently patrol the Western and Onehunga train lines.
As Auckland Transport recruits more staff they will begin to work on other services as well.
Newshub.
