nickkrol

Maybe this would be kinda odd, but what if they combined the turnstile system with proof of payment. Stations would not necessarily need agents to monitor the turnstiles especially with the new automated machines if people swiped their passes to gain access to the platform, but would still be subject to show proof of payment if asked by transit police. Not even all (more heavily used) stations in bigger cities have an agent present all the time the station is open. This would at the very least allow the "honest" passengers, such as those who were interviewed in/commented on the article in my last post, to pay - even if the on board collector is down. And yes, yesterday I did notice clear signage at all the stations explaining POP. It did however confuse one passenger, who I assume was from out of town, at the airport because as I said there were signs on the booth, turnstile, and new ticketing machine which said to pay on the train, but also another just beyond that area which said that in order to enter "that area" you must have already paid. I helped him and told him that the system is "transitioning" and to pay on board.

My Rapid Experience: Yesterday (7/6) I rode the rapid for the first time in a long time. I feel everything went well in terms of service and schedule, but a month ago I read this article(http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/2009/06/riders_on_rtas_red_line_rapid.html) and based on my observations yesterday I can see why/how people are not paying and I have one major question: why have the turnstiles have been eliminated? I rode the Red Line from Windermere to downtown and then later from downtown to the airport to meet someone then finally back to Windermere. At Windermere I had to show my pass to the booth attendant, but I could easily see how during busy periods (rush hour/downtown events) some people could get by without paying. When reboarding at Tower City I did swipe my pass at the turnstile, but I could easily have boarded without doing so since there was an opening/gap (no turnstiles) between the two sets of turnstiles. I noticed the same was true at the blue/green line entrances. The employees were only half paying attention to me. When returning from the airport the booth and turnstiles were both closed with a sign saying to pay on the train. When the train pulled up people entered (there were a surprisingly large number of people boarding here) but initially the fare collection box was not turned on. So people could not swipe their passes or insert dollar bills. Some people did insert coins but since it wasn't on, it caused a temporary problem once the driver did turn it on. Also, it is very awkward that the fare box faces away from the door so as people come in they need to do a 180 in order pay/swipe their pass. I'm 95% certain that everyone did pay, but still it would have been very easy not to. With the fact that RTA is installing all these new ticket vending machines at the rapid stations (like the ones currently on the HealthLine), I don't understand why a system like the kind used in New York were people pay their fare at the machine and then swipe a pass at a turnstile could not be used. This seems to be alot better than a proof of payment system.