Indulge me...
Ask a San Francisco resident (or even some visitors to the City) what their thoughts are on Muni, the City's primary transit system, and you are bound to get a strong opinion. There have been a couple of times when I have deeply considered putting them in the "Fail" category instead "Find," but today I got the chance to be optimistic. It's just about every day that I see one or more people get on a Muni bus for free through the back door or through some story at the front door. If people do this on the trains, sometimes they get caught in the tunnel through downtown, but I've never seen transit fare checks on a bus--until this afternoon.
I was riding a number 6 bus outbound when we pulled up to the stop at 9th and I saw transit police checking fares at the sidewalk for those boarding the incoming buses. When the bus stopped, three officers got on and checked everyone's id, and had to remove two people for not paying. One man pointed out that he was disabled, but apparently you can carry a card that makes you exempt from fare payment if you just carry the card, and he left his at home, so off he went. Only after offenders had been removed were new riders allowed on.
Why do I not feel sorry for those removed?
- Muni is in the red right now financially, and constantly threatening cutbacks;
- There's usually a fare hike, either at the transit or on the Clipper card, at least once a year.
If you put two and two together, you are exceeding paying customers' expectations if you remove folks who don't pay their fair share to ride and support the transit system. Paying customers are rewarded for paying their fares, and removing the offenders helps to take some of the sting out of the occasional rate hike--it shows you value the folks who pay.
Thanks, Muni fare checkers. I know that's not an easy job, and I appreciate your desire to keep Muni accountable.
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