Train Jumping

[TheSnakeLady]

I was riding the light-rail system one afternoon in Denver, and a mini-horde of teenage boys with skateboarders got on. (One thing to note about the light rail is that not everyone's tickets get checked. In fact, depending on when you get on and where you ride to and from, it's quite possible to ride the light rail without ever buying a ticket. Of course, this sort of behavior only leads to increases in fees for those of us who pay for light rail usage...)

Anyway... this group of young teenage boys hauls their skateboards onboard the same light-rail car I'm sitting in, and starts to settle in. All of a sudden, the majority of them make a mad dash for the closing doors! An RTD cop had boarded the car to check everyone's tickets.

He had a short conversation with the one teenage skateboarder who didn't dash off the train (and actually had a ticket). Yep, the buddies were trying to sneak a free ride on the light-rail. If the train hadn't been just leaving, the RTD cop would've chased after them -- even being in the train station requires you have a light-rail pass. At the next stop, the RTD cop got off.

What I suspect happened next: the skateboard kids probably got on the next train, and the RTD cop probably caught them when that train reached the next stop. I wonder if they were smart enough to buy a ticket first...?

[Chromatix]

What they should probably do is have two teams - one boards the train, and the other hangs back on the platform for the suspicious-looking people rushing off. Since they still need a ticket to be on the platform...

The platform team can then transfer to the next train, or to one travelling in the opposite direction.

[tollbaby]

ah but that would be a double-edged sword. They may catch more fare-jumpers, but they'd also have to increase fares to pay for the extra staff.

[smileyeagle1021]

ah but that would be a double-edged sword. They may catch more fare-jumpers, but they'd also have to increase fares to pay for the extra staff.

actually they probably wouldn't have to raise fares... at least with UTA the transit police are funded pretty much by the fines... Really, if an officer catches just one fare jumper the fine will pretty much pay for his shift... so if you catch more fare jumpers you can afford more officers to catch them...