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the other day I overheard three older folks on the streetcar talking about fare inspection. I listened for a while and at one point asked them if they& #39;d support getting rid of fare inspectors. one of the men said "I actually think there should be more of them"
me: more people policing the poor?
dude: well I don& #39;t mean it like that
me: but what do we do about all the people who actually can& #39;t afford the ttc but rely on it to live?
dude: I don& #39;t know, I haven& #39;t thought that far ahead. I just think everyone should pay the fare
dude: well I don& #39;t mean it like that
me: but what do we do about all the people who actually can& #39;t afford the ttc but rely on it to live?
dude: I don& #39;t know, I haven& #39;t thought that far ahead. I just think everyone should pay the fare
the idea that we should both have compassion for poor people but also force them to pay for thing they can& #39;t afford is driving ttc fare policy. we& #39;re spending money to subsidize some fares, while also investing millions in fare inspection https://www.thestar.com/news/city_hall/2019/09/26/parents-with-subsidized-child-care-get-discounted-ttc-passes.html">https://www.thestar.com/news/city...
we could put ALL the money for fare inspection into fare subsidies, but we demand a token payment from poor people. this is also exemplified by the arbitrary fights ttc officials get into with riders who try to enter the system without paying
the other day I overheard a ttc official at spadina station complaining about a black woman who tried to enter without paying. he was saying, "this is when they have a real situation of racism, no one believes them." this dude was south-asian and he was talking to a black person
he also said something about the "race card". I challenged his racist statements and we started talking. he told me most ttc officials will let people without money on the system IF THEY ASK. so we understand people can& #39;t pay, but we demand a gesture, a nod to power
you have to pay something, and if all you have is your dignity, you have to pay with that by asking to be let on. if most ttc officials let people on for free as long as they ask, that should simply become ttc policy. but discretion makes people feel powerful, so they guard it
anyway it& #39;s really frustrating to live in a city that gives some people a ttc subsidy, some people a free ride, and meet others with beefy inspectors, fines, and special constables whose explicit purpose is to use force. we need to make transit free and cancel fare inspection