Fare dodgers cost Swiss Railways millions

Over 300,000 fines went unpaid in 2015 despite reminders, costing Swiss Railways tens of millions of Swiss francs Keystone

The vast majority of fines issued last year for travelling on a train without a valid ticket went unpaid, the state-owned rail network, Swiss Federal Railways, has confirmed.

According to a report in the Le Matin Dimanche and SonntagsZeitung, last year 460,000 people were caught on the Swiss Railways network without a valid ticket. Eighty per cent of fare dodgers were issued with a fine of CHF70-90 sent to their home address. But only one in three actually paid the fine.

Over 300,000 fines went unpaid in 2015 despite reminders, costing Swiss Railways tens of millions of Swiss francs, the report said.

Swiss Railways spokesman Stephan Wehrle confirmed that every year the national rail operator files tens of thousands of complaints against people who refuse to pay fines.

Wehrle said 2-3% of people cheating the system travel with forged rail tickets.

Switzerland’s system of railways, long-distance buses and local transport is regarded as among the best in the world. Around a million people board Swiss trains every day.

The average Swiss makes 53 train trips a year. The Swiss use rail transport more often than any other nation in the world except the Japanese.