Region of Waterloo staff recommending fare inspection officers on GRT buses

Waterloo Region says free rides on Grand River Transit are costing them hundreds of thousands of dollars. CTV’s Colton Wiens has more.

Staff with the Region of Waterloo are suggesting putting fare inspectors on public transit buses.

The recommendation stems from the last fare evasion study, conducted over 10 years ago, indicating two per cent of riders don’t pay the required bus fare. That equated to more than $1 million in lost revenue annually. Staff said, based on recent conversations with both drivers and riders, the number of free rides is closer to five per cent.

Their recommendation is to hire one permanent fare inspector lead and six contracted fare inspectors. Putting them on buses, they argue, would result in increased fare collection which would, as a result, offset the cost.

Staff said reducing fare evasion by half a per cent, or even one per cent, would bring in $500,000 to $1 million annually. Building a culture of proof-of-payment and rear-door boarding would also prepare the transit system for higher-volume operations in the future.

Currently, inspectors only check for paid fares on the LRT.

Riders told CTV News they often see people taking a free trip.

“All the time. I see it quite often, people just get in there without paying,” said transit rider Andrew Veeramony. “Every day. I’m pretty sure it happens every day.”

“[Fare inspectors] will ask to check your card to see if it works or, if it’s not, then they’ll ask you to get off,” explained transit rider Rafael Rivera. “People argue and people get aggressive. It looks like they’re almost getting in the fight or something, but you just kind of turn away and mind your own business.”

For both, it’s a different situation on Grand River Transit buses.

“You can’t really get away with that,” Rivera said. “You got to go through the [driver].”

The region plans on revisiting the staff recommendation during their budget committee meetings in December.