Photo: Matt Brown (Flickr)

TfL cracks down on passengers not wearing masks

29 January 2021

by Christopher Carey

Transport for London (TfL) has stepped up enforcement against a minority of passengers not wearing face coverings on public transport, with 1,700 fines issued since the rule became mandatory in June 2020.

Fines start at £200 (US$273) and escalate for a repeat offence to a maximum of £6,400.

To date over 9,300 passengers have been prevented from boarding and 2,100 have been ejected from tube and bus services, in addition to the fines handed out.

Siwan Hayward, Director of Compliance, Policing Operations and Security at TfL, said: “People should only be travelling if they have a legitimate reason and ensuring the network is safe for those customers is our top priority.

“Wearing face coverings, unless exempt, has been mandatory for seven months now and we continue to communicate the requirement in stations, on platforms and on-board services, so there really is no excuse for not wearing one properly for your entire journey when travelling on our network.

‘”London is at a critical point in this pandemic and this is no time to be complacent with the measures we take to protect ourselves and others.”

Selfish minority

The transit operator has increased the policing of rules across its network with a squad of 500 enforcement officers.

The scheme runs in parallel to patrols carried out on trains by the British Transport Police (BTP), which faced criticism in September when it was revealed that fewer than 0.1 percent of people stopped by its officers for not wearing masks on trains received a fine.

TfL says there is a 90 percent compliance rate at peak travel times, and that a “selfish minority” who are not exempt are continuing to ignore the regulations and are “putting themselves and fellow passengers at risk”.

Passengers who are exempt from wearing a face covering have the option to order a free card or badge from the TfL website.

Customers who do not pay their fine within 28 days face prosecution and around 650 people have been prosecuted for not wearing a mask on the network.

As commuter levels have fallen, risen and fallen again since the pandemic started last year, TfL has at times struggled to strike a balance between passenger numbers and a lower frequency of tube services.

It faced criticism this week over pictures and videos circulating on social media of packed tubes with no social distancing.

The network is reportedly operating at around 17 percent of normal demand, but there are concerns that use of public transport is higher in the capital than during the first lockdown.

Staggered times

In response to this, TfL officials have urged major employers in East London including Amazon, Sainsbury’s and Wickes to stagger start times for workers in a bid to reduce overcrowding on the Underground.

Similar initiatives were introduced and stepped up in other European cities last year in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Matt Brown (Flickr)

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