Please have your Ticket ready at the barrier

This poster, by Cyril Kenneth Bird (Fougasse), was produced as part of a series for London Transport in 1944. Each design conveyed an everyday procedure, using humour to communicate with the Passengers in an eye-catching and memorable way. This poster advises Passengers to have their Ticket ready at the gate. An angry-looking queue forms as a woman casually searches through her bag. Adherence to an established code of conduct on the Underground was particularly important in wartime. There was a shortage of staff, vehicles and parts; people were travelling more as a result of service away from home; and overcrowding had increased. These factors made it more difficult to keep Passengers safe and services running smoothly. The only direct reference to war in this series by Fougasse, are the male and female representatives from all three military services that are among the crowd.