Watching the news today and I see there’s yet another story on how Translink is losing millions of dollars in revenue due to fare cheats.
People, this is total and absolute bull. And furthermore the mainstream news media know that it’s bull. It’s a red herring designed to make you believe that poor people are the reason why transit can’t fund itself.
It’s a big lie! The so-called revenue that Translink claims to lose from free bus riding from the poorest members of our society doesn’t exist except in their warped imaginations. The only reason poor folk ride transit for free is because they can. They cannot pay for the ride, they haven’t the money. All that's actually lost is space on the bus or train.
If a transit operator demands payment then they get off and walk. There’s no lost revenue because there’s no revenue to lose. Poor people haven’t got any. They won’t pay their fines, they won’t pay fares they won’t give a damn about the system because they haven’t the money to do so. In a wealth-oriented society if you haven’t got any wealth then you don’t care about the rules. If you can ride free you will, if you can't you won't. Revenue plays no role in this.
As far as lost revenue is concerned, getting rid of the U-PASS university passes that wealthy school students get for free rather than paying their fair share of the fare would go much further towards covering the losses that Translink accrues. But this isn’t really about fares at all. It’s about poor people riding the bus for free. And having public officials and mainstream news media lie to the public about it is just part and parcel of a social war.
