TICKET barriers are being planned for one of Scotland’s busiest railway stations to target fare-dodgers.

Strathclyde Partnership for Transport said it is working with Scotrail to introduce ticket gates at Partick station.

Rail sources say fare-dodging continues to be a major issue at the interchange station, which is owned by SPT.

Scotrail is currently running a campaign, Buy Before you Board, aimed at targeting passengers without tickets.

Passengers who do not buy a ticket, where there is a ticket office or vending machine, “give up the right” to a discounted ticket on a train.

However, rail sources say it is a persistent problem at Partick, which is part of Scotland’s fifth busiest transport hub with four million passengers passing through it each year.

The station is one of the primary stations on the Argyle Line and North Clyde Line of the Glasgow suburban rail network, providing services to the east and west.

It is also served by Glasgow Subway, with an adjacent bus station.

Ticket barriers are already in place at Anderston, Argyle Street, Charing Cross and Glasgow Central low and high level stations as well as Queen Street.

A spokeswoman for SPT said: "We are working with ScotRail on the introduction of ticket barriers at Partick Station to ensure they integrate well within the overall station itself.”

A spokeswoman for Scotrail confirmed that early discussions had taken place.

She added: “On August 20 we had a multi-agency day (SPT, BTP, ScotRail) regarding making the rail environment safe and secure.

“As part of that activity we’ve been running a Buy Before You Board campaign across many routes for the past several months and regular customers will have seen on-train posters and notices around stations relating to this activity. We’ve also run social media reminders for customers.

“Anyone who passes a ticket purchasing opportunity (eg ticket office, ticket vending machine) gives up the right to get a discounted ticket on a train.

“They would have to pay the full price for their journey when buying the ticket on-train.”

The ageing Partick station was demolished and replaced with a new flagship building in 2009 at a cost of £13 million.