Look hard for a way to reduce fares (5)
I believe the answer is:
stare
'look hard' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
'way to reduce fares' is the wordplay.
'way' becomes 'st' (abbreviation for street).
'to reduce fares' becomes 'are' (I am not sure about this - if you are sure you should give a lot more credence to this answer).
'st'+'are'='STARE'
'for a' is the link.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for stare that I've seen before include "bird" , "Gawp" , "Rates (anag.)" , "Look with fixed gaze" , "Gaze fixedly" .)