Court Quashes 75,000 Rail Prosecutions

Chief Magistrate Paul Goldspring has ruled that around 75,000 fare evasion prosecutions brought by train companies including Northern Rail and Greater Anglia are void due to misuse of the Single Justice Procedure (SJP). These cases, prosecuted under the Regulation of Railways Act 1889, will be quashed. The Department for Transport, Courts Service, and train operators are working to identify affected individuals and refund fines by November. Train companies have acknowledged their errors and apologized to those affected. The ruling aims to ensure that such prosecutions are treated as if they never existed.