September 2, 2008
Fascist Fare Inspectors?
Oh boy.
Are fare inspectors are out of control? In the above shot, captured in all its manic glory by Jameth late this afternoon, witness this guy flipping out on a female inspector lady (and male fare inspector not shown.) And with good reason. Just before this scene, we should point out, the train carrying the above passenger was delayed at Van Ness because three fare inspectors held the doors open so that they could finish busting people. Gross.
Anyway, the passenger in question here yelled at the two Muni goons, "I was inspected at State, just now between here and Church, downstairs on the platform, and again with you ...I am out of here," taking off with the inspectors yelling at him to stop. They did not, according to Jameth, pursue him. He escaped without a hefty ticket.
This man is our hero.
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Can they finally do something about the back door fare jumpers on the bus?
The whole Fare Inspection/PoP system is a bad one and one not particularly well-run, but being a dick to these low-paid "goons" isn't the answer. I've seen so many more instances when the inspected is so much worse than the inspector.
I have observed that the people who yell the loudest about having their transfer checked are the people who don't have one.
Just as another data point, most of the people I see getting busted are businessmen and marketing/mall types. Whitey, more or less.
Can they finally do something about the back door fare jumpers on the bus?
That's pretty much part and parcel to living in the city.
Joel: low paid? lol! That's a cushy union job that pays nearly $30/hr last I checked.
I don't think they're out of control, but it sounds like they need to be more widely dispersed ... hop on some of the well-used bus lines instead of double- and triple-checking Muni Metro users.
We have a POP system to speed loading, not everyone who loads on the back of the bus is fare jumping.
true, periqueblend. backdoor loading isn't illegal.
Joel: low paid? lol! That's a cushy union job that pays nearly $30/hr last I checked.
Regardless, it doesn't make them fascists for doing their shitty job.
The problem is much higher up with Muni management for implementing the system in the first place and middle-management for the way the run it.
The on-the-ground fare inspectors might be the ONLY Muni employees I don't generally have issue with, come to think of it.
I'd like to see this enforced on the 30 Stockton or 45 Union.
Oh whine whine whine, just carry valid fare and you have nothing to worry about.
If you don't want to show valid fare, buy some nice shoes and walk, otherwise feel free to run off, as POP inspectors don't have police powers. They do, however, have the power to call the police.
Since when is back-door loading legal on the bus? Last I checked, it's only legal on the streetcar lines and as a test on the 38-Geary.
But the inspectors held the doors open and delayed a car from leaving the station? WTF? Why didn't they just board and check fares between stations?
Really, they need to expand fare-checks to the bus line. 30 and 45 lines get my vote...
I had my transfer checked twice by the same inspector yesterday. "Again?" I asked. He nodded. Not maddening, exactly, but...what?
And if anyone has any interest, the same inspector pointed at the Translink machine and said, "They're supposed to turn that on sometime this week." What do you suppose the odds of this being true are?
Yeah, when I first moved here, I'd constantly see people back-loading on the 15 bus, so I assumed it was OK. Did it once and got my head screamed off by the driver and that was it for me and back-loading. That was a few years ago so it may be different now but I'm not familiar.
Frankly, I don't care if people try to ride for free. Whatever.
But it certainly adds much insult to injury when you've finally gotten off of a MUNI train and endured the endless delays and crowds, only to be confronted by a stupid fare cop. Seriously.
Rear boarding on busses is a huge problem, and is clearly illegal as demonstrated by the huge red and white signs on both rear doors of almost every single bus in the fleet. I've recently moved here from Los Angeles, and I've lived in several large urban areas, and San Francisco is the only city I've ever lived in where this was a real problem. In Los Angeles, for example, this rarely happens (yes, I rode the busses there every day). I see it happen on over 95% of the busses I ride here.
Not only does this cut down on revenue, but because they know there are breaking the law, most of the rear boarders are very aggressive, not even letting people get off before pushing there way on.
Muni really needs to work out this damn POP program.
I also yelled at a fare inspector at Embarcadero when it was the end of the ballgame, hoards of people boarded with their tickets checked at the platform, and then checked again at embarcadero as we all transferred to BART.
Total inefficiency of the system.
I'm sorry, I forgot that in San Francisco lawbreakers are entitled to do so, and deserve high praise for their stealing skillz.
There would be no need for fare inspectors if so many people didn't steal from us, the owners of MUNI in the first place.
Yes, it sucks when you're a law abiding person and it's the one time you leave your wallet at home and you get busted while some smelly trustafarian rides the 71 Haight all day getting blasted on some dynamite weed, but sadly, this will happen. Hey, it almost happened to ME once when I was about to board and realized I didn't have a pass. I didn't get on the train and walked until I found a place selling passes and that was that.
I once got in an argument because my transfer was expired. The reason it was expired? The muni broke down for 15 minutes. It was awesome explaining that it wasn't my fault my transfer was expired because their bus was late.
Nonetheless, people shouldn't just be allowed to ride free - it makes all of our prices go up. I don't know what the solution is, but there's got to be one somewhere.
Here is a picture of the signs found on most bus rear doors:
http://flickr.com/photos/itinerant/39446296/
As for the train fare inspections, I think a simple solution to this problem would be to only check as people exit the stations.
Hero? Taser the f-tard.
I know rear loading is against the law, but it is often the only way to get on a crowded bus, as no one in the front or middle seems to understand the concept of moving back to allow more people on the bus. Besides most busses have Translink boxes at the back. Does that mean it will be legal once Translink is in place?
As far as fare inspectors go, I dunno. The POP system is confusing and poorly explained, especially for tourists and non-english speakers.
The inspectors are apparently paid well enough, and seems to be on some sort of meter maid-like quota system. I heard them swearing and complaining amongst themselves if they don't "catch" someone on a car.
Just last week, I saw them stickler some folks whose transfers were expired by mere minutes. There should be some sort of grace period. Given the usual MUNI delays, there is no way to predict how long that MUNI ride might take. Do you go buy another ticket, if your pass expires during a ride? What if you're on the back train?
This wouldn't be an issue if the oligarchs who truly benefit from the transit system paid for public transit. By oligarchs, I mean the corporations who benefit from the city shuttling its wage slaves around using public transit on workers' wages and time.
Fare is no fair!
Hold up your ticket, walk by, continue on with life. I'm glad they're checking.
Does any other mass transit system use fare inspectors?
Okay, holding up the train is not a good idea.
But seriously, if you've paid your fare, just show your ticket and quit your bitching. And if you HAVEN'T, well, you deserve what's coming to you. SF has way too many freeloaders.
BTW, Translink basically works now. Try it, you'll like it!
KatyG: yes, most of the rest of the civilized world uses proof of payment.
aj: blow me.
Huh? Proof of payment requires enforcement to be effective. Why complain about it?
I want to be blown next after aj.
FWIW he did pay his fare. his transfer was off by a small amount of minutes (she's looking at her watch to get the exact time) because of delays in the system caused by fare inspection.
FARE STRIKE! Freeloaders unite!
Not blowing anybody right now. On strike myself.
I'm all for fare inspectors, but there's no point in having them bunch up like that as if they were 38 Gearys. I'd be pissed too were I that guy. It's a huge waste of money and resources.
A better use would be for the inspectors to appear randomly on the bus, check for fares, and then hang out at the rear doors for a few stops to make sure those without transfers or passes don't get on that way. Then again, this probably makes far too much sense so pardon me...
Sincerely,
The chick who gives you the stink-eye for boarding the back of the bus in the AM without making some sort of vague effort to prove you paid in some way.
I don't understand them checking the time on the transfer AFTER people have left the train ... that makes no sense to me. As long as the transfer is valid when they step on the train, they're good to go. As others have said, MUNI delays and other issues make the idea of checking transfers after the ride pure nonsense. How long until someone with mobility issues is suing the City for harassment and bias if this is allowed to go on?
On Sunday evening, I was returning from SFO. After all my flights were on time, and the crews pleasant, I took BART to Civic Center and transferred to MUNI KLM outbound.
Naturally, I just missed a train trying to get my luggage through the fare gates. It's 8 minutes before a 1-car L is due to arrive. When it finally does pull in, it looks pretty full, but I notice some room at the very front of the car. I make my way over there, only to be told by the fare inspectors that I and my luggage must be behind the yellow line or wait for the next car (another 9 minutes!).
Enforcing this rule means a good 10 fewer people can fit in the one-car, infrequent trains.
I'm sure I ended up banging someone's knees with my bag. Sorry it it was you. I really wanted to stay out of the way.
@RinconHilSF,
I think your transfer has to be valid for the whole ride. Of course, that is impossible to ensure on MUNI.
MUNI Transfer Policy indicates that travel has to be complete before the transfer expires.
Because the enforcement isn't effective. Duh.
makfan: that wouldn't surprise me... doesn't make it any more reasonable that the transfer times don't take into account MUNI imposed delays.
@RinconHillSF: you must have proof of payment at all times when you are in the system (the platforms, past the fare turnstiles, etc.) and not just on the train
I think I got a ticket from that robot woman a while ago, the ONE TIME in my entire Muni riding career that I lost my transfer en route.
like mark925 posted, you show your proof of payment, keep walking and get on with your life.
Thank you for being pleasant, cooperative and generally contributing to a less stressful urban environment.
They're not terribly good at their jobs. They should take a lesson from Europe. Get on the trains in plain clothes at every entrance of one whole train car. Then, just as the doors close put on the fascist armband, and check everyone really fast. This is something these guys seem to fail at big time. I've seen people on the N see the uniformed agents get on and then they jump off the N, escaping without paying.
One of these awful fare inspector gave me a ticket tonight because I got into the embarcadero station at 5:15pm using my transfer which expires at 5:30pm. The K-line was late and we also got stuck in the tunnel for a while. By the time the bus got to West Portal, where the fare cop got on, it was 6:00pm. He insisted that my transfer has expired (enroute) and wrote me a ticket. The people sitting around told him I have been on the bus since downtown and my seat-mate, whom I have never met, gave me his business card and offer to be my witness. Now I have to go to court to disput this ticket. It will cost me at least a day (no pay from work)if I want to fight it or pay that stupid $50 ticket. It's just not right. Oh, the cop has the nerve to write on the ticket that my transfer expired at 5:00pm, when the 5 and the :30 was clearly shown on the transfer. Good thing I still have my transfer. There should be a class-action law suit against muni for this kind of stuff. I see too many of these cops harassing riders. Muni is seldom on time; we don't need to add on another 15 minute on our daily commute to deal with so many of them.