Bus drivers deal with all sorts of people while on the job and some of them refuse to pay their full fare.
Jordan Bateman of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) is predicting anarchy if TransLink doesn't crack down on fare scofflaws, and he makes some valid points. People should pay their fares - and the huge majority do.
But the truth is driving a bus is a difficult job, made even more difficult by belligerent people who don't like it when the driver questions them when they don't pay the correct fare. The bus drivers' union argues, and rightly so, that drivers aren't police officers and they shouldn't put themselves or their passengers at risk if someone refuses to pay.
And it's not always obvious who will take offence if a driver asks someone to pay the proper fare; a simple question could end up being a police incident. Such was the case in October, when a bus driver picking passengers up at the Coquitlam bus loop questioned a woman who didn't pay up and he got a punch in the face for his concern after trying to make a 911 call.
It would appear the normal rules of social discourse, responsibility and obligation did not apply to the people allegedly involved in this case, and all too often, especially in poorer areas, people don't have the funds yet take the bus anyway.
Is it up to bus drivers to be social workers, too?
The CTF argument that more should be done to prevent fare evasion could soon be a moot point when SkyTrain fare gates are installed but bus drivers are limited in what they can do. Would more transit police help? Perhaps, but these fare evasions still represent less than 5% of passenger rides, and don't justify making buses police states on wheels.
The CTF also argues that the fair evasion problem is another reason voters should reject a proposed 0.5% sales tax for transit expansion. We would argue the opposite is true: Greater investment in transit will make taking the bus or SkyTrain more of an option to people in outlying areas, therefore boosting ridership in general among those who can afford to pay and for whom paying for a service is a cultural and social norm.
