Great Western Coffee Shop

Is it me or are there all of a sudden loads of RPI's in Devon and Cornwall? they were at Truro yesterday and saw some at Plymouth today, glad of it really as it makes our job easier!

Its half term - apparantly!

'cuse my ignorance, but what is a RPI?

RPI: Revenue Protection Inspector
ATE: Assistant Ticket Examiner

"Gold braid Brigade"

Ah, thanks for that guys!

Are FGW having a push on fare dodgers at the mo then?

If so, I am glad! Number of times I have travelled up to Pad, and not had my ticket (except through the gates) checked en route.

Overheard many a time 'passengers' say that they have no ticket, and then say to ticket inspector that they got on at the last stop, except they got on 200 miles away!

FGW and others must lose millions.

Why can't tickets be inspected (by putting ticket into a reader device to open the internal train doors) at point of entry and exit?

Ever thought of having a quiet word with the TM? They've been very appreciative on the couple of occasions I've pointed out someone fare-dodging (usually when they don't present themselves when the TM is asking for "tickets from X" and I know they've got on at X).

It is half term in Cornwall.  8)
On Monday there were RPI's doing Gateline checks at Truro at they were on lots of trains.
I think extras have been drafted in as it is half term and will probably go somewhere else next week for a different half term.
Its surprising how many people they were catching at Truro. Mainly people who 'lost' their tickets despite Guards/TM's saying there were gateline checks.

What you suggesting the RPI's are school children, would explain why there are loads about this week!!!!! :D :D :D

Apparently they've taken on some at Plymouth and Penzance, started a couple of weeks back, was chatting to one of them today, good news though, about time!

Vacman, thanks for raising this!

From what you say, RPIs make your job (as an ATE?) easier: why is that? I assume it's because they have greater 'powers' than you - but what powers, and why?

As I hope you know by now (based on my previous posts!), I'm against fare dodging in any guise. What annoys me is (for example) when train staff on our local trains habitually stay in the rear cab between two stations, so regular passengers get to know that they're unlikely to be checked between those stations and therefore don't bother to buy a ticket.

At my local station, which is unmanned and does not have barriers (not sure where they'd fit them in anyway!), I think that's an issue - costing FGW a lot of revenue!

I would concur with Chris on this. Last Saturday I boarded a lightly loaded service at Nailsea (along with several others) and nobody came through the train before Bristol. (I needed a ticket as I was off to Cardiff ("Sospan fach", and all that) and my season covered me as far as Bristol - hence couldn't use machine.) If I had wanted to, I could have alighted as far as STJ and still not had the opportunity to buy a ticket. Fortunately, I was then checked, and so was able to buy a ticket before the "scrum" of Cardiff on match day, where they make anyone without a ticket join a very long queue, which is a bit rich if you haven't been able to buy a ticket through no fault of your own.

Back to the original theme of this topic...
On Friday on the 6:47 BTM-PNZ ( nice refurbished 158771 with old seats) had a guar, an ATE and an RPI on. I think that was a bit excessive. I was only on it between Camborne and St.Erth so I don't know how long the ATE/RPI were on.

1 got caught red handed last night, he got on a Fareham-Cardiff at Fareham, and the gripper came through after Romsey, he asked for a Single from Soton, "How did you get through the barriers then". I nearly burst out laughing. Best thing was it was full and standing, so a whole trainload of people got to hear!

I would hazard a guess that if you were on a unit, the guard was either finishing his shift at BTM, and was cashing up early(no one ever does that, honest) or he presumed tickets from Nailsea were purchased from the ever reliable TVM's! The other option was that if the train was manned by an Exeter crew, we sometimes can get an earlier train back south(and thus finish earlier), but normally a very tight(1-2 mins) connection normally running from platform 3 to 13! If this was the case the guard would have bags packed and ready to run! ;)

If they were both in grey then they were BOTH RPI's, they only work in pairs.

No, one was the old ATE, been around for ages, the other I haven't seen before so I assumed he was one of the new RPI's, but he could have been an ATE as well.

One of the ATE's got promoted, along with some gateline staff from Plymouth, was chattin to one the other day, they have different uniforms to ATE's.

Thanks for the explanation. I can understand the logic of not wanting to wait an hour to get back home.

On a note of revenue.

WAs on a pacer yesterday where the guard was still checking tickets whilst passengers were waiting to get on at Starcross and Dawlish Warren and i'd say the doors were still locked for about a minute after arriving!

I boarded at Starcross and got checked before arrival at Dawlish Warren, and it was busy!! :o

I still don't understand the diffences between RPI and ATE.  Wouldn't it make sense for them, and TMs (and barrier staff and anyone else involved in "chiecking tickets"), to all have the same full set of powers to sell tickets, issue penalty fares, take details for subsequent prosecution etc?

yes and no, an ATE and conductors focus is revenue COLLECTION whereas an RPI would be revenue PROTECTION, an RPI has the time to take names and addresses and thouroughly check tickets etc, whereas ATE's etc are for busy "Paytrain" routes, the process of issuing a penalty fare is quite time consuming from what i've been told and if ATE's did this then hardly any tickets would ever be done. As for gateline staff, the Plymouth and Exeter staff are, I think, Penalty fare trained but can't issue them at the moment due to some problem with the DFT.

About ^12,000* per year.

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* I made that number up, but you get the idea...

OK - thanks.  I understand. 

I do think that there is a danger of undermining the anti-ticketless travel message to the public here.  The retoric and the signs are all threatening penalty fares but if experienced "dodgers" get to know that only certain people are likely to issue penalty fares (and recomendations for prosecution?) doesn't the message get rather diluted.