Vancouver Transit Violation Tickets

[flight_from_kamakura]

hah, well, if you contest the ticket, the issuing officer will not show up to court and you'll probably get off. if he/she does show up, you can change your plea to guilty or uncontested and ask for a reduction of the penalty owing to mitigating circumstances (poverty or the facts of the story are likely to be your winners).

it was a bonehead move though to provide them with incorrect contact information, but true personal information. you should have done precisely the reverse if you'd hoped to walk away from this one, because brother, this won't go away as easy as all that. they'll get you when you apply for your bc driving license, and at that point, you'll no longer have the ability to contest it, your one option will be some sort of complaint (i couldn't even fathom the process) which would involve lying to them about a load of things (namely, that it was someone else and not you).

i wonder if you could track the ticket down and contest without the physical manifest (of did you keep it?).

[Distill3d]

see, and this is where transit becomes a cash cow. is one supposed to be paying attention to the exact moment when their fare expires, or should they be paying attention to when they get off the train? as i said before, its not like your ticket beeps and says "get off, pay a new fare" when it expires. clearly, this is an abuse of transit authority. common sense on belahlf of the officer should have been demonstrated. clearly, he did pay his fare to ride the train.

if he had no fare at all, then he should have been fined and removed from the train. laws are meant to be left to interpretation. it all depends on whom is reading the law to what if any punishment you will receive for any violation of the law.

[volvokenny]

Yes I still have my bus ticket and the expired time says 7:30 and my violation ticket is issued at 19:50. I don't think I am going to contest my violation because it would cost me about the same as taking a day off for court. In fact it will cost me propably more if attending court just to get the ticket discounted. I admit I did violate the policy but with no intention to do so. If I was unemployed I will absolutely find the time to challenge and I would encourage anyone in this circumstance to do so. I really think if I was a good lier knowing that Transit officer will not ask for ID I would definately gave him a wrong name and date of birth but I guess I just don't have a crimminal mind

Having this violation has made me to be more carefull. Further note, I have encountered in the past that sometimes the transit ticket machine does not always accept certain type of bills either it is fresh of the print of just frailed it will not accept it. Can you imagine if that was your only money to pay for your transit fare? and you don't want to miss the schedule transit time to your destination? I would think you would just get on the skytrain anyways but face the fact you have violate the system. I spoke to transit authority on this and they said to use the phone to call and an authority will assist you with your payment and propably give you the go ahead to ride the skytrain. I think thats a joke and it is probably best to buy transit tickets for back up

[twoNeurons]

Originally Posted by Distill3d

see, and this is where transit becomes a cash cow. is one supposed to be paying attention to the exact moment when their fare expires, or should they be paying attention to when they get off the train? as i said before, its not like your ticket beeps and says "get off, pay a new fare" when it expires.

What do you mean I got a parking ticket? It didn't call me and tell me it was expiring. Am I expected to know what time I parked?

What do you mean I exceeded the two-hour kayak rental? The Kayak should've warned be 15 minutes before I

What? I have an overdue library book? Am I really expected to know the exact day it's due?

What do you mean a 10-day return policy? Am I expected to know exactly when I purchased this?

The expiry time printed on the back is clearly indicated. You don't even need to do any math to figure it out. In addition, Volvokenny admitted he made a stop at Wal-mart... I don't know about you, but when I stop I ALWAYS check my ticket expiry when I get back on transit. It's easy to lose track of time when you make a stop.

It seems some of you guys are more angry than vvkenny is! (Btw, vvk, Welcome to SSP)

clearly, this is an abuse of transit authority. common sense on belahlf of the officer should have been demonstrated. clearly, he did pay his fare to ride the train.

Is it? I mean is it the officer's job to guess whether it's intentional or not? How is that abusing his authority? Yes, the officer probably could've been lenient in this case, but 20 minutes is a long time in SkyTrain-land. You can get to New West from Vancouver in that time by SkyTrain. In other transit systems you pay per ride (meaning this would be a 2-stop trip).

if he had no fare at all, then he should have been fined and removed from the train. laws are meant to be left to interpretation. it all depends on whom is reading the law to what if any punishment you will receive for any violation of the law.

Yes, you are correct, and given the fact that he was on SkyTrain, which is a FAST mode of transportation and a full 20 minutes over (not just a few minutes) I think that in this case, the officer wasn't guilty of neglect.

There are a LOT of Zone violators.

Even yourself... from North Van to Burnaby is technically travelling through 2 zones... I know it's from Zone-2 to Zone-2 but you choose to go through Zone-1 (no doubt because of time savings) Distance-wise you're getting a better deal than most... and travelling pretty far on a one-zone pass.

[Distill3d]

Originally Posted by tintinium

Even yourself... from North Van to Burnaby is technically travelling through 2 zones... I know it's from Zone-2 to Zone-2 but you choose to go through Zone-1 (no doubt because of time savings) Distance-wise you're getting a better deal than most... and travelling pretty far on a one-zone pass.

actually there is no possible way to get from North Vancouver to Burnaby without going through Vancouver, so thats not a choice. if there was say a 3rd method of going from Lonsdale to Edmonds that didn't cross over the zones, i'm sure i would be taking it. time savings has little if anything to do with it.

[deasine]

Interesting... learning lots here... though I usually have a transit pass so it doesn't matter to me =) But seriously now, I insist having turnstiles and a distance based fare for the skytrain is better. Anyway, at least with turnstiles, if I forget my transit pass at home, I would know since I can't enter the system. I've done it a few times where I completely forgot my pass was at home and thank god they didn't catch me >_<

I still think it's not the job of TransLink to inform passengers about their fare policy... so imagine if so many of our members here are misinformed about the system [posters or announcements], can you imagine the general public?

[twoNeurons]

Originally Posted by Distill3d

actually there is no possible way to get from North Vancouver to Burnaby without going through Vancouver, so thats not a choice. if there was say a 3rd method of going from Lonsdale to Edmonds that didn't cross over the zones, i'm sure i would be taking it. time savings has little if anything to do with it.

yeah... the only way I know of is the 28 bus from Phibbs Exchange... it's one of those weird bus routes that traverses zone 1 and 2. It goes down Boundary. Unfortunately, that would mean two buses and a Long Skytrain Ride.

Bus to Phibbs Exchange.
28 Bus to Gilmore Station (goes down Boundary)
Long loop around on the M-Line to Edmonds.

Option 2
Bus to Phibbs Exchange
28 Bus to Gilmore
129 Bus to Patterson
Short Skytrain Ride to Edmonds

Option 3
Bus to Phibbs Exchange
28 bus to Gilmore
129 Bus loop Northbound to Edmonds

Option 4 (Slightly in Zone 1)
Bus to Phibbs Exchange
28 Bus to Joyce
Skytrain to Edmonds

When you compare those options to:
Seabus to Waterfront
Skytrain to Edmonds

You can see why it's worth it to pay for the 2-zone pass through Vancouver.

It's similar from Surrey to Coquitlam (the only reasonable path is a 2-zone through New West)

I suspect that if it was easy to get from North Vancouver to Burnaby or Surrey to Coquitlam (read: no major water bodies in the way) Translink would likely make the zone system differently:
North Shore: Zone 1
Vancouver: Zone 2
Burnaby: Zone 3
Richmond: Zone 4
Surrey: Zone 5
Coquitlam: Zone 6

However, this would make a much more complicated system. As it stands now, it is much more convenient for most people to just upgrade a zone and travel through if they're crossing two boundaries due to the fact that the natural boundaries limit the number of people who will bus-hop to avoid a $1.25 extra charge.

Then, there are also a few, like yourself, who risk travelling through the zone justifying the fact that the starting and ending destination are the same zone.

Not saying I blame you for it, mind you... but it is a risk you take.

[ravman]

how about we eliminate transit fares... ( put a levy or something to something like car insurance( this way if you need a car you can subsidize the non car pple)) this way it would eliminate a whole bunch of problems....

[mr.x]

Originally Posted by ravman

how about we eliminate transit fares... ( put a levy or something to something like car insurance( this way if you need a car you can subsidize the non car pple)) this way it would eliminate a whole bunch of problems....

Transit shouldn't be free......fares are also an economical tool to prevent people from making pointless trips. The whole problem right now is that fares are too high.

[deasine]

Originally Posted by mr.x2

Transit shouldn't be free......fares are also an economical tool to prevent people from making pointless trips. The whole problem right now is that fares are too high.

for short (small distance) trips... for long ones, it's pretty cheap if you compare with other systems.

[nname]

Originally Posted by tintinium

It's similar from Surrey to Coquitlam (the only reasonable path is a 2-zone through New West)

This is going to be changed in 2009, when you can go from Coquitlam to Maple Ridge to Langley then to Surrey

[worldwide]

or you could go from coquilam to downtown vancouver to ladner to surrey... sounds great!

[twoNeurons]

Originally Posted by nname

This is going to be changed in 2009, when you can go from Coquitlam to Maple Ridge to Langley then to Surrey

That's true... but I think that from most places in Surrey, it still would be more convenient to take the train than to go to Coquitlam through Langley and Maple Ridge.

[SpongeG]

i don't know it takes a good hour + to use busses and the train plus a number of transfers

at least if its one bus from coq to surrey via maple ridge it will be more pleasant

nothing worse than sitting on a bus getting off waiting waiting for the train get on the train get off the train go wait again get on the train get off the train wait wait for a bus

[quobobo]

Originally Posted by ravman

how about we eliminate transit fares... ( put a levy or something to something like car insurance( this way if you need a car you can subsidize the non car pple)) this way it would eliminate a whole bunch of problems....

A tax that redistributes money from polluters to people who are (relatively) eco-friendly? I'm not sure, I think that's a little too farfetched to ever become a reality here. There's a lot of people who have vehemently opposed plans like that in the past.

[nname]

Originally Posted by SpongeG

i don't know it takes a good hour + to use busses and the train plus a number of transfers

at least if its one bus from coq to surrey via maple ridge it will be more pleasant

nothing worse than sitting on a bus getting off waiting waiting for the train get on the train get off the train go wait again get on the train get off the train wait wait for a bus

I think it will be 2 buses.. if they implement both 703 and 704.. or 3 if they implement only 703. But since I live in Poco, going to surrey via Maple Ridge will probably be much more pleasant during morning rush hours, instead of getting stuck in traffic for 20-30 minutes just to get to Coquitlam.

[Distill3d]

Originally Posted by mr.x2

Transit shouldn't be free......fares are also an economical tool to prevent people from making pointless trips. The whole problem right now is that fares are too high.

i agree that transit shouldn't be free. however, fares aren't too high for the system Vancouver has in place. i would agree that we should do away with Fare Zones and just charge between $2.50 and $3.25/fare. however, that is a pipe dream and will never happen.

[twoNeurons]

Originally Posted by SpongeG

i don't know it takes a good hour + to use busses and the train plus a number of transfers

at least if its one bus from coq to surrey via maple ridge it will be more pleasant

nothing worse than sitting on a bus getting off waiting waiting for the train get on the train get off the train go wait again get on the train get off the train wait wait for a bus

Oh... that's true... if it's one bus, I can see it being more convenient... I wonder about the trip time thought... Depending on where in Surrey you are, you would be going way back to get to 200th. I can't see them running a bus like that, except from Cloverdale... so it would likely be two buses. That's my guess, anyhow.

Originally Posted by nname

I think it will be 2 buses.. if they implement both 703 and 704.. or 3 if they implement only 703. But since I live in Poco, going to surrey via Maple Ridge will probably be much more pleasant during morning rush hours, instead of getting stuck in traffic for 20-30 minutes just to get to Coquitlam.

What are the planned routing for the 703 and 704?