MTA Doesn't Care About Bx12 Fare Beating

Flickr user Kriston Lewis

Even after losing about $8 million a year from bus fare beaters, like those cheating the Bx12 honor system, the MTA has no plans to inflict harsher punishments or change the system. They're actually expanding it to First and Second Avenues in Manhattan. MTA spokesman Charles Seaton told the Daily News, "The officers are out there every day, so we're not going to do anything special. Cities all over the world have implemented rapid transit buses. It's part of speeding the buses along." That's right—scofflaw commuters in European cities have been riding without paying for years. Now it's finally our turn!

Though 90 people boarded without paying within an hour earlier this month, Seaton says it's no skin off the MTA's already bare back. "Fare evasion on SBS is consistent with the system average for all buses," he said, pointing out that many people who ride the bus already have a free transfer from the subway. But even if half of those people had subway transfers, that's still $100 the MTA is losing every hour.

Other, honest riders seem annoyed that the buses aren't even that fast. One rider said, "I ride it each day, twice a day, and have not seen a noticeable time savings. Also, in almost two years, I have yet to see anyone checking receipts. I also regularly see people scrounging around, picking up discarded tickets and even presenting them to the drivers on the Bx12 non-SBS buses who accept them."

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By Jaya Saxena in News on April 20, 2010 12:10 PM

Comments [rss]

xgeyiph772

Nice. Now let's ask those folks who drive to work to pay a $5 toll to cross the East River so Bx12 and other non-paying riders can get a fair shake. Unreal.

dirty hipster

they should toll the harlem river bridges before the east river bridges - in that case

fishfryin

enough time of my day is wasted waiting for old people to get on and off the bus, why should i have to wait for 25 people to go single file through a fare line? it should be this way on all buses

Rocknrope

With so many farebeaters in one hour, I'm surprised more cops don't stake out the buses to hit their summons quota.

Tower18

They're busy writing people tickets for walking between subway cars.

JenChungsBaby

I actually saw last week a bus driver get up and walk to the back of the bus to confront a woman who didn't pay the fare. The woman got all flustered and blabbered something about not having her card and how she'll pay next time. Then she said she's a social worker, as if that matters. Then on the way off the bus she made a show out of thanking the driver for letter her pay next time. The bus was crowded too.

Splicer

Yeah, he got up to confront a woman social worker. Let's see how brave Mr. Confrontation is when it's some assclown with baggy pants and his hat on sideways speaking a language that might be English. I want to see that confrontation.

tsol

I saw a busdriver do just that in Philly once- to a teenage wannabe who had a posse no less. He stared the smartass down until his friend said, "Yo, don't disrespect that man!"

The kid closed his mouth and the bus rolled on.

JenChungsBaby

The driver was a black female (if that means anything) and the farebeater white and middle-aged. And we were on the UES. And yes, I definitely got the feeling that the driver was enjoying the whole thing, though that may have just been my racial biases coming through.

Boogie Down

There's a driver on the Bx39 who takes crap from no one, regardless of appearance or native language. I'd vote for him for mayor too (if I was eligible to vote).

Boogie Down

[Insert bus driver's name here] for mayor!

Micah

As if the bus is the worst? I see scofflaws get on the subway every day, just about every time I get on the D train, and they use the emergency exits to illegally get on the subway. Just in a given 10 minute wait for a subway at the 167th Street D train stop, I probably see 3-4 people illegally entering the subway either going uptown or downtown. If people cannot afford access to the subway, then there should be some sort of a program providing them with discounted monthly subway cards, but I am tired of seeing our system in disrepair and seeing vandalism of MTA property while no one does anything about it.