Curious Why Commuter Rail Conductors Don't Always Collect Fares
BOSTON (CBS) - Old trains that keep breaking down are a huge problem for commuters. Replacing them will cost the 'T' millions of dollars it says it doesn't have.
Some of you curious why conductors don't make sure everyone has paid.
Linda from Westboro Declared her Curiosity, writing:
"On two of the commuter rail trains I ride, some conductors don't always collect the fares."
She's not alone.
It turns out that the system doesn't even know how much money it's losing.
WBZ-TV's David Wade reports.
Some 70,000 people ride the Commuter Rail, and for many, the trip has been a bummer. Bad service is often blamed on a lack of money to repair or replace antiquated equipment.
"One of the ways to get the revenue is to start collecting the fares on all the trains, all the time," said Linda, who is a monthly pass holder.
She pays to ride in advance, but not everyone does, and sometimes those rides are free because, she says, conductors don't always check tickets.
"If the train is crowded, they definitely don't do it. If the train is more than 30 minutes late and they already know that because we're already 30 minutes behind, they don't collect the fare either then," said Linda.
Two years ago, another curious viewer complained to us about the same problem. The people in charge of the system at the time told us they knew about the problem and said they were working on it.
"This is something that we've had a concerted effort over the last six months, fully staffing our trains, and we're also conducting training for all of our conductors," said Richard Davey, the head of the Commuter Rail at the time.
Davey today runs the MBTA, which is responsible for the entire system.
Scott Farmelant was a Commuter Rail spokesman two years ago and still is. He said the problem is not completely fixed because of what he calls an open system with no turn stiles as riders just walk on.
"We are focused 100%, as much as possible, to have those conductors collect every single fare possible," said Farmelant.
On-board collections are up 9 percent over the past four years, but since riders are not counted every day, the system doesn't know how many other fares they could be missing.
"Last week, twice it happened and the train was fairly empty and nobody came and checked my ticket," said Alicia, a commuter.
"Every dollar helps and we're focused on getting every dollar that we can," said Farmelant.
They said the real solution is an automated collection system. But, two years ago, they said that was coming some day. That day hasn't arrived yet.
Even though on-board fare collections are up, it's hard to know how much of that's an increase in riders, because the MBCR counts riders only twice a year.
