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tions, and detect and deter crime. Officers are assigned to decisions can be made, the hearing process, and the appeal
uniformed and plainclothes details. process; and give the bureau power to enforce civil penalties
for violations of laws, rules, and regulations.
Fare inspection is largely handled by Metro fare inspec-
tors. These inspectors are employees within the Niagara Initially, some 25 years ago, the fine for fare evasion
Frontier Transportation Metro System Rail Department. An was set at $20. Currently, the penalty is $50, which is less
on-duty inspector checking for payment on a Metro Rail than the price of the $64 adult monthly pass. Although this
platform is shown in Figure 10. Fare inspector positions are amount is generally low compared with other agencies, there
open to all NFTA Metro employees and are represented by is a progressive nature to the penalty that will occur if not
Local 1342 of the Amalgamated Transit Union. paid within a certain period of time, for example,
NFTA Metro provides this description of the job for a · If paid within 11 and 39 days, $100 --If it is not paid in
Metro fare inspector: part or a hearing is not requested within 10 days, then
the penalty will increase to $100.
The job involves checking and enforcement activities
relative to the self-service fare collection system. It · If paid between 40 and 70 days, $180 --If no action is
consists of checking patrons for valid evidence of fare taken within an additional 30 days, then the penalty
payment, issuing citations to violators, assisting the will reach $180.
public in understanding fare payment procedures and · If paid between 71 and 101 days, $280 --Another 30
Metro service, observing for and reporting of unsafe and
irregular conditions, exercising sound judgment relative days of nonpayment or a request for a hearing will raise
to all aspects of assigned duties, and the protecting of the penalty to the maximum of $280.
Company property. (14 )
The Niagara Transit Adjudication Bureau is the adju-
There are five FTE Metro fare inspectors. They do not dication unit for summonses issued to individuals alleged
have police powers and are considered to be "transit ambas- to have violated New York Codes, Rules and Regulations
sadors" as part of NFTA's Customer Appreciation Program. Title 21 Miscellaneous, Chapter XXIII Niagara Frontier
They are authorized to issue oral warnings instead of cita- Transportation Authority. Section 1151.21 "Fare Evasion"
tions to fare evaders in certain situations. Metro fare inspec- (16 ) describes what constitutes a fare evasion offense. Sec-
tors routinely perform "blitzes" in combination with NFTA tion 1151.22 "Attempted Fare Evasion" (17 ) shares identical
police officers, and these blitzes form the basis for keeping wording but applies to "a person who shall enter upon the
track of the agency's fare evasion trend. paid zone" instead of rail transit vehicle.
Fare Compliance and Inspection Fare evasion is a civil penalty until an individual has
two or more unpaid "active" fare evasion violations; then
A Metro Rail fare evasion rate chart is presented every month it becomes a criminal offense. The individual can then be
to the board. "Fare evasion" is determined by "blitzes" dur- arrested and charged with "theft of service" at Buffalo City
ing which Metro fare inspectors inspect 100% of the riders Court. If an individual defaults on payment, the bureau can
in a concentrated period of time. Trends from April 2008 file a civil judgment as long as the address on file is accurate
through December 2010 show a relatively wide fluctuation and mail is not returned. After 2 years, if an address does not
in fare evasion by month, ranging from 0.29% (December exist, those records are purged from the system.
2008) to 4.00% (January 2010). The stated objective of the
chart is to keep a management watch on the fare evasion rate About 10% of fare evasion summons are dismissed or
trend and, in particular, to be prepared to take action when voided. For more than 10 years, the bureau has accepted
the rate moves above 2.00%. monthly payment as low as $5 per month until the penalty
is paid in full. More tickets have been paid since this option
There is no target percentage for the number of passen- was implemented. NFTA receives all citation revenue and
gers who are inspected on a daily basis, but in general, Metro applies it back to transit operations. Citations for fare eva-
fare inspectors check about 8.6% of underground passengers sion numbered 4,526 last year.
on board trains in rail stations.
Transit Adjudication Function DALLAS, TEXAS--DALLAS AREA RAPID TRANSIT
(DART)
Fare enforcement adjudication takes place at the NFTA Tran-
sit Police Headquarters. The Niagara Transit Adjudication Authorized by state legislation, DART is a regional agency
Bureau was created in 1984 by New York Public Authorities created when following approval by local vote in 1983. It is
Title 11-A - Section 1299-EEE (15). There are 10 sections a transit development entity as well as the operator for bus
that define the role of the authority; explain when default and rail services and high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes
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in the Dallas area. DART's service area includes Dallas Authority (The T) and links downtown Dallas with down-
and 12 suburban jurisdictions. The agency is governed by town Fort Worth with stations in the midcities. Figure 11
a 15-member board of directors appointed by the city coun- shows the DART rail network and the TRE route.
cils, eight from the city of Dallas and seven appointed by the
suburban cities. The initial LRT start-up was in 1996, and the system has
grown incrementally since, with the most recent addition an
Off-board PoP is used for fare collection on the regional extension to the Green Line in December 2010. The present
commuter rail, Trinity Railway Express (TRE), and all of system totals 72 mi (116 km). More LRT service expansion is
DART's LRT lines: Red, Blue, and Green. The TRE is a planned, with additional extensions scheduled to open as early
joint operation of DART and the Fort Worth Transportation mid-FY 2012 and to continue over the next 20-plus years.
FIGURE 11 DART rail system map.
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In 2010, annual ridership on the TRE was 2,469,000, or · Local--covers all local bus and LRT services.
approximately 10,900 daily. For DART's LRT lines, annual · System --includes all local services, plus DART
ridership was 17.8 million, or 57,800 on an average weekday. express bus services, and TRE train service between
However, with the addition of the expanded Green Line ser- downtown Dallas and the DallasFort Worth (DFW)
vice, the average weekday ridership for January 2011 rose to regional airport TRE station.
72,700, an increase of 26%. · Regional--includes all DART services and Fort Worth
Transportation Authority services (The T), TRE ser-
Use of Proof-of-Payment Fare Collection and Evaluation vices, and Denton County Transportation Authority
of Barrier Fare Collection System commuter express services.
· Reduced --includes reduced-fare programs for dis-
As with most modern LRT systems in North America, the abled, seniors (65+), children (514), and other special
case for use of PoP fare collection was generally assumed fare programs.
to be a complementary feature. The predominant at-grade
nature of the system being planned seemingly dictated a PoP experience on DART's rail line indicates that 78%
barrier-free system. of its riders primarily rely on day passes. At 14%, single-
ride fares make up the second-largest category of fare media
However, as with other systems, policymakers expressed used. These are valid for 90 min from the time of purchase
an interest in the feasibility of having a barrier system to and cannot be used as a transfer. There are also passes that
deal with the real (and perceived) matter of fare evasion. As include monthly, multiple days, employer corporate passes,
a result, in 2002 an "LRT Station Fare Barrier Study" was annual passes, college student passes, and vouchers for non-
performed for DART (18). profit organizations.
The purpose of the study was to determine the possibilities DART uses two types of TVMs:
for providing greater control of access to the system through
use of a barrier system as a way to increase revenue by reduc- · Type A (shown in Figure 12)--These TVMs dispense
ing or eliminating the number of people riding trains without single-ride tickets and day passes (both for all four cat-
paying. The analysis assumed turnstiles and fencing would be egories of service) that are valid only on the date of
added, plus additional TVMs near station entrances. purchase. The machines accept coins and bills only.
· Type B (shown in Figure 13)--These are the newer
The analysis found some unique problems associated with TVMs and offer more versatility by allowing use of
the physical nature of DART's then-existing LRT system: credit and debit cards. In addition to single-ride tick-
ets and day passes, the Type B TVMs allow purchase
· Existing stations with adjacent bus drop-off areas typi- of 7-day and 31-day passes (except for reduced-fare
cally do not have adequate space for TVMs, a fence, users). These TVMs have contactless smart card read-
and pedestrian movement inside the fence. ing devices for possible use in the future.
· Generally, there is inadequate space at most stations to
provide for a fence and pedestrian movement. Public Information Regarding Proof-of-Payment System
· Fencing would be virtually impossible to install at the
downtown transit mall stations because of the sidewalk "How to Use a DART Ticket Vending Machine (TVM)" on
nature of the stations. the DART website has a prominent paragraph that states,
· The trackway cannot be fenced at at-grade stations,
Note: Hold on to your ticket or pass and be prepared
thus permitting unauthorized access to the platform to show them to a DART Fare Enforcement Officer,
around the end of the fencing. DART Police Officer or other uniformed DART or TRE
personnel.
The cost for installing a barrier fare collection system
(not including five stations due to infeasibility) for 59 sta- Step 5 on a DART web page titled "Six Easy Steps to
tions (existing and buildout) was estimated to be $46 mil- Riding a DART Train" states, "Hold on to Your Ticket. Fare
lion (2002 dollars). Management concluded that the cost was inspectors may inspect your ticket as proof-of-payment."
prohibitive and the project was not undertaken.
For customers, there are public information signs
Fare Media Used and Availability announcing PoP on arrival at the station platform, on the
platform, and on the train. An example of a post-mounted
DART's fare structure is divided into four categories defined sign is shown in Figure 14. One of the in-vehicle signs is
by the quality of its basic services: shown in Figure 15.
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FIGURE 14 Post-mounted "Proof-of-
Payment Required" sign at entrance to
DART platform.
FIGURE 15 DART PoP information sign posted in light rail
vehicle.
Fare Enforcement Function
DART maintains its own police department, which includes
responsibilities for police services over the TRE, bus, HOV
FIGURE 12 DART TVM Type A. lanes, and LRT. Within the DART organizational structure,
the chief of police reports directly to the executive vice presi-
dent of operations. DART police officers are designated as
special-purpose peace officers by state statute to provide
police services on the transit system.
State Legislation Related to Fare Enforcement and Evasion
In 2003, DART was the beneficiary of state legislation that
created two statutes related to fare enforcement: One deals
with the enforcement of fares, including definition of a
fare evasion offense and the associated penalty; the second
allows the agency to employ civilian fare enforcement offi-
cers with specific prescribed authorities. A summary of the
two statutes is provided here:
(a) Texas Transportation Code (TTC) Section 452.0611,
"Enforcement of Fares and Other Charges;
Penalties" (19)--There are seven subsections that
deal with the role and authority of an executive com-
mittee, the need to post signs alerting passengers to
each area where possession of a fare is required, and
the definition and various aspects of what constitutes
a fare evasion offense. In this section, the offense is
classified as a Class C misdemeanor (i.e., least severe)
and is not a crime of moral turpitude (i.e., it does not
go on the individual's criminal record).
(b) Texas Transportation Code Section 452.0612, "Fare
FIGURE 13 DART TVM Type B. Enforcement Officers" (20 )--There are six sub-
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sections that define the employment of, duties, and Guidelines for Fare Enforcement Officers
authorities of a fare enforcement officer. The section
also prescribes that the officer must complete a 40-h Upon passage of the state legislation in 2003, DART's chief
training course, be uniformed, and not carry a weapon of police developed a general order with its purpose to pro-
while performing duties. Further, the fare enforcement vide "guidelines for the fare inspector position" (21).
officer is not a peace officer and has no authority to
enforce criminal law. In addition to a statement of purpose, the general order
has six sections:
DART's Fare Enforcement Function
1. Overview --Describes the fare inspectors' responsi-
The implementation of the provisions contained in the above bility: to inspect passengers' tickets and/or passes to
statutes enabled DART to hire and train civilians specifi- ensure that they are in compliance with DART PoP
cally for fare enforcement. Until 2003, the fare inspection requirements. "Fair and impartial inspections will
and enforcement had been carried out solely by DART's instill trust, appreciation, and continued use of DART
police officers. as a means of safe and reliable transportation."
Today, law enforcement of DART's rail services is carried 2. Fare Media--Lists valid fare media.
out by police officers (with police powers) and fare enforce-
ment officers (FEOs), who are nonsworn personnel with no 3. Procedures --Deals with fare inspection, enforce-
police powers. The FEOs were created as a direct result of ment, dealing with passengers with disabilities,
TTC Section 452.0612. FEOs are uniformed, as required by service interruptions, counterfeit passes, and other
the same code section. crimes and offenses.
DART has more than 45 FEOs assigned to support TRE 4. Uniforms and Appearance --Lists what is expected
and LRT fare enforcement efforts. Although FEOs are lim- and any items that are prohibited.
ited to issuing fare evasion citations, DART police officers
are readily available for assistance with disruptive patrons 5. Prohibited Conduct--Identifies the consequences of
or issues requiring police intervention. Similarly, the FEOs engaging in prohibited conduct.
know that their only function is fare enforcement. The pres-
ence of FEOs for fare enforcement allows DART police 6. Court Appearance --States that FEOs have to appear
management to reallocate police officers to address other in court in support of a citation that was issued.
crimes and "hot spots." DART police deployment of a com-
bination of police officers and FEOs on TRE and LRT proves DART Adjudication Process
effective in customer service and increased police visibility
and passenger sense of security. The 2003 state legislation, in particular TTC Section
452.0611, included provisions that authorized DART to
To effectively oversee the rail services, the police depart- handle fare evasions by either an administrative or judicial
ment has divided the system into 10 geographic sectors. resolution process. As a result, DART has developed an
During daily operations, a team of police officers and FEOs adjudication process that allows an individual who receives
is assigned to each sector. DART police officers' response a fare evasion citations two choices:
time to situations on the LRT requiring police attention on
average is 5 to 7 min. 1. Administrative Resolution--This an administrative
procedure managed by DART that permits a person
DART police have executed signed memoranda of under- to pay a $75 "administrative fee" within 30 days and
standing with each city that DART rail lines and buses avoid a criminal court proceeding. The individual can
pass through to delineate DART police officers' duties and pay in person at DART offices, by mail, or by using the
responsibilities with regard to traffic enforcement, incidents, DART store (DARTstore.org). However, this adminis-
and accidents affecting DART assets and operations. In trative procedure is for fare evasion citations only and
addition, the DART chief of police meets with service area not for other violations. Further, persons who choose
chiefs of police a minimum of once a year. this option can no longer contest the citation.
DART police also maintain a contract with a private secu- 2. Judicial Resolution--In this case, the person proceeds
rity firm that provides armed guard services with distinctive through a court procedure and may offer a "not guilty"
uniforms at DART transit centers, park-and-ride lots, and plea. If found guilty, the individual is subject to a pen-
bus operations facilities. alty fine from $150 to a maximum of $500. In addition,
