bus drivers and "reduced fare" eligibility

[KellyHabersham]

*this doesn't apply to any particular driver/bus route, it's just been a problem recently, and really bothers me because since I'm not able to drive, I can't take my daughter anywhere unless we ride the bus or walk*

To start with some minor background info, passengers who use the reduced bus fare are required to show proof of eligibility.....basically, that they're under 18/over 50. This is something which is made clear, and I have NO problem with this policy or the idea of it being enforced, and I don't know how it works on the driver's end, only that I don't think you have to scan I.D. cards.

Anyhow, where the suck comes in is that the last few times I've taken my daughter (I'll call her "Emily") somewhere on the bus, the driver has kind of given us a hard time because they wanted her to pay the adult fare. Granted, one of those incidents was when she'd forgotten to bring her school I.D. card with her, but still......."Emily" is only 12, she definitely does NOT look anywhere near the cut-off age for using reduced fare, so I'm not sure what these drivers were thinking. (had this happen on the "going to" and "return" trip)

Even when I did have "Emily" bring her school I.D., we still had problems because the driver couldn't seem to figure out that she IS eligible to use the reduced fare and had proof. And unfortunately, it's gotten to where "Emily" isn't as big on visiting me/riding the bus, because we never know if the driver's going to give us a hard time about fares or not. (and don't get me wrong, I'm NOT complaining about drivers doing their job, it's using what I view as poor judgement that bothers me)

[PepperElf]

i'd suggest contacting the company and letting them know about it

[scruff]

I'd ensure Emily has her school ID and something that shows the ages that people are allowed to travel on the reduced fare with her fror any journey, like a print-out of the bus company website. Partly for her confidence. And if she still gets hassle, write to Head Office.

I've had problems with bus drivers following the briefing they had from their managers, which doesn't follow the advertised timetable/fares. Once I brought along a print-out of their company web-site that proved they indeed were supposed to stop on my high street. That and writing to the Head Office pointing out the discrepancy between what the drivers were being told and what was being advertised got the route sorted.
(One particular muppet of a manager was telling drivers to do my route 'set-down only', so they did not pick up at my stop. Got that sorted.)

[Magpie]

Check and see if your transit body offers an ID card that shows you are eligible for this fare. In Toronto you can only use student fare with that card (proof of age isn't sufficient), and if your transit authority has a card there might be confusion as to whether or not other proof-of-age should be accepted. The card oughtn't be more than about $5 p/a, which is generally only a few tickets worth.

[KellyHabersham]

Check and see if your transit body offers an ID card that shows you are eligible for this fare. In Toronto you can only use student fare with that card (proof of age isn't sufficient), and if your transit authority has a card there might be confusion as to whether or not other proof-of-age should be accepted. The card oughtn't be more than about $5 p/a, which is generally only a few tickets worth.

That's something to look into, although I'm fairly certain that our transit system just has the monthly pass or ticket that's printed with "reduced fare" on it.

[Sparky]

Former bus driver here.

Sounds to me like your baby is growing up. It can be VERY difficult to guess age, and it's annoying to have passengers who act like you should be able to read their minds and who get huffy if you ask them to show proof of age.

That said, if you have understood the rules correctly, your girl should not have any trouble whatsoever if she shows proof of age. Do call the office and make sure you have understood. Maybe the policy has changed. Maybe the policy is that children under 18 are only supposed to pay half fare to and from school. Maybe the policy is that they are supposed to have some sort of pass or ID card, like Maggie suggested. You might want to ask for a manager and tell him or her what kind of trouble you're running into. It could be that some training is in order. Since you've made it clear that you don't have a problem with a particular driver, you don't have to worry about getting anyone in trouble.

This is a pain, but be sure to tell Emily that apparently she just looks older than she is. If she's like most 12 year olds, she'll take that as a compliment.