Taiwan Railway Administration - Fare Collection and Fare Control

Fare Collection and Fare Control

TRA's tickets were printed on traditional Edmondson presses until Japan's NEC supplied a computerized ticketing and reservation system in the late 1980s. Almost all stations are divided into paid (platform) and unpaid (waiting room) areas. Normally, ticket examiners govern platform access, checking and punching tickets as passengers enter. Conductors perform onboard ticket checks near peak load points or every ~100 miles, verifying that passengers hold train-class appropriate tickets, and dispense step-up and zone extension fares from portable ticket printers. Examiners also control access to unpaid areas at destinations, ensuring all passengers paid full distance- based fares. Used tickets are collected and not returned to passengers unless cancelled by stamps (similar to postmarks). Those arriving without appropriate tickets (i.e. requiring "fare adjustments") are assessed 50% penalties, giving passengers incentives to find conductors on board to purchase step-up fares. Tickets are validated at origin, destination, and sometimes en-route; evasion thus would require elaborate two-ticket schemes or exiting from paid area without going through fare control. Fare evasion rates are thought to be low. Proof-of-payment methods are not used.