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Passengers travelling on Transport for Wales services without a valid ticket on the Rhymey and Ebbw Valley lines now face a penalty of up to £20.

TfW estimates it loses around £10m a year in lost revenue due to fare dodging and fraud. It first introduced a ‘penalty fare zone’ on services on the South Wales Mainline in March, but on Monday September 9 it extended this.

Anyone boarding a train without a valid ticket, or anyone who has not paid via TfW’s new ‘tap in’ method, will either face a £20 fine, or double the cost of the single journey ticket – whichever is greater.

The operator has not ruled out a future increase to £100 – which it says is inline with other train companies.

Speaking about the introduction of the penalty fare in March, TfW’s chief commercial officer, Alexia Course, said: “TfW is a not-for-profit organisation with no shareholders, and all revenue is used to fund the running of the services and future improvements. By reducing the money we lose through fare evasion and fraud, we can also reduce the subsidy required from Welsh Government, which is funded by the taxpayer.”

But concerns have been raised whether the new rules could unfairly penalise people who find it difficult to use a ticket machine before they board – especially given that the majority of stations are now unstaffed.

Speaking to BBC Wales, John Davies, 80, from Newbridge, described the machines as “not very friendly at all” and relies on buying his ticket from train staff.

He said the new rules were “another slant at the old age pensioner and the working people who use the trains”.

However, a spokesperson for TfW said people who were unable to use the machines, such as the elderly or disabled, would be able to buy from a conductor on the train.