Fare-dodger barriers cost £230,000 but are left open

Rail bosses have spent nearly a quarter of a million pounds installing ticket barriers at a crime-ridden station — only to leave them open because of staff shortages.

The gates were installed at Peckham Rye station in May but are only operational until 7pm. They are left open after that because there are not enough staff to deal with travellers having problems going through them.

The four Oyster card barriers were installed as part of a £325,000 station upgrade. They will not be fully operational for another six months, according to train company Southern.

It spent £95,000 upgrading the station and the Department for Transport spent £230,000 on the barriers and new information screens as part of a
crackdown on fare-dodgers.

But far from cutting crime, British Transport Police figures show there were more recorded offences at the station in August and September than in the period last year, rising to 26.

A BTP spokesman said: "The slight rise in offences can be attributed to proactive operations at the station — particularly Operation Chicago, which sees officers stationed at key transport hubs across south London and includes the deployment of metal-detecting arches and drug-detection dogs.

"The operations are aimed at disrupting criminals and deterring disorder to create a safer environment for people travelling on the railways."

A DfT spokesman said: "The gates have resulted in a 12 per cent increase in revenue, showing the number of people that were previously travelling without valid tickets.

"There is a requirement from April next year to staff them all the time the station is open."

Despite the revenue increase, the Tories hit out at the spending. Shadow transport secretary Theresa Villiers said: "The news that nearly a
quarter of a million pounds of public funds was spent on barriers that are left open in the evening raises serious questions about whether the Government is really seeking value for money
when it spends taxpayers' money."

A Southern spokesman said: "Currently, there are insufficient staff numbers to man the gates.

"This was always going to be the case, but we can give assurance that the gates will be fully staffed from April."