Fare Evaders Still Suck!!!!
I've had it! Everyone who pays their fare has had it! BART: you need to do more to make fare evasion more difficult. I don't care how much it will cost, but there are a few simple fixes that I feel are no-brainers in combating fare evasion:
1) The pass-through gate(s) that the station agents, with their permission of course, allow people to enter and exit the paid area need to be secured. How hard is it to put an electromagnetic lock on that gate and put a button in the station agents cube to allow them to unlock it? I'm sick and tired of seeing every bum walk right through the gate like they own the place and nothing being done about it.
2) Emergency exits need to be alarmed! I've even seen emergency exits at some public places (airports leading to secure areas, for example) that have a 10 second delay before they unlock. An unalarmed emergency exit might as well be an open door.
3) Put an accessible, bidirectional faregate directly in front of every elevator that is outside the paid area that leads to the platform. No more, "Oh, I forgot to process my ticket" B.S.
4) As for the fare gate hurdlers, poles or additional barriers should be placed directly in line with the gate traffic to prevent someone from getting a direct running start.
Nothing here is too difficult or too expensive to implement. A little bit of problem solving is all that is required to make fare evasion so difficult that it just wont be worth it.
You know, I've sometimes
You know, I've sometimes wondered how often people can get away with evading the fare. If you haven't entered a gate you can't exit a gate and vice versa. Do people just evade at the other end too? I know station agents are sometimes like blobs (if they are in the booth...), but still.
Sometimes I've seen an older gentleman hold up his wallet like he has a special pass and exit out of the emergency gate. I don't believe he's BART personnel, but I was under the impression everybody has to go through the fare gate.
I know how you feel though. I feel such a thrill of pleasure when a fare evader gets caught. Once at Civic Center I stepped to the side when I couldn't get my EZ pass out. The guy right behind me casually stepped out of the emergency gate as I used my pass and tried to casually pass it off by turning in the other direction when BART police walked toward him. At first I got mad that he couldn't seem to figure out where he should be going, and then I realized he was trying to run away. Hee hee hee.
I still say that repeat Fare
I still say that repeat Fare Evaders should get a mandatory bathroom cleaning duty.
1) The side gates used to
1) The side gates used to have alarms- a loud shriek like whistle. If the booth is manned the fare evaders won't try to go through. At places like 19th and 12th where the far ends may not have personnel, I've seen people go through unabated.
2) Emergency exits are alarmed. Depending on where they are, no one responds in earnest. I've seen people just walk out of Coliseum onto San Leandro St. whilst the alarm blares and the forthe agent to give chase is futile (other end of the station- Crowded street- guy blends in. Fruitvale used to be like this too (I haven't been lately so I don't know if the station has been redesigned) People would just go out the back to 34th Ave. since it was clear across the station from the booth.
3) I agree. North Berkeley is a notoriously easy station to just walk out of. Personnel do watch though and if you walk back to the elevator and you don't have a bike or a stroller, they especially look at you and will call you out. Coliseum and the El Cerrito Stations are also notoriously easy to walk out of. The special fare gates by the snack bar ( are they still operational ?) were often hidden. But then again, the booth at Coliseum is a good 50 yards from the elevator and at (especially) del Norte, the elevator is out of site most of time due to the crowds.
4) Most people piggy back (I like to turn around and mess up said scheme) They mostly pick people moving slow or not attentive.
Which brings to mind why open
Which brings to mind why open strollers and baby buggies are now allowed on BART and Muni without comment or concern... I thought it was a federal law that all such equipment must be folded and child in arms/walking before boarding any public conveyance in the interest of public safety (even more so for the safety of the child). In fact, Muni station agents(remember when there were Muni station agents? less fare evaders then)used to assist in that. Aisles were not blocked, seats were not blocked. If there were an accident, the child wouldn't be under twenty adults. Many of these strollers/buggies do not contain a child at all, but rather packages....
This annoys me to no end.
This annoys me to no end. There have even been a couple of instances where I was exiting out of the station, a person came directly behind me after I'd put in my ticket and before the gates closed. I thought 'he has got some nerve.' but what can u do? They need to hire extra patrols like they have at the MUNI underground stations. I know it would cost money but you have to spend money to make money. I'm sure they are losing lots with the everyday fare evaders.
I stop short when there is a
I stop short when there is a tailgater behind me. Boy do they look dumb when the gate closes on them.
(Sadly they typically back out, walk around for a sec and tailgate some other sap).
I often bring my bike on BART
I often bring my bike on BART and get off at the Embarcadero station. Sometimes there are so many fare evaders clogging the elevator, that bikers and disabled folks are not able to get on.
Okay...now that just makes me
Okay...now that just makes me sick!
That's right, elevator = fare
That's right, elevator = fare evader access.