June 11th, 2008
TTC employee arrested for selling counterfeit tickets
By Matthew Blackett // 10 Comments
A media release from the TTC just came across our desk: adult tickets will be phased out by September in order to combat ongoing counterfeit operations. Last night, A TTC collector was arrested and charged for selling counterfeit tickets out of Wilson Station. The employee was charged with fraud, theft, breach of trust, and possession of instruments of forgery.
As a result of a series of ongoing investigations over the last several months, TTC staff had already prepared a report for next week's Commission meeting recommending the elimination of adult tickets.
The TTC has seen an increase in counterfeit ticket use, costing the TTC and Toronto taxpayers $300,000 - $400,000 a month in lost revenue. Commissioners will consider this recommendation, and additional measures to verify legitimate fares, at its June 18 meeting. If approved, adult ticket sales would end in September.
Approximately 65 million adult tickets were used last year, representing 15 per cent of TTC fares. Tokens, as well as tickets for seniors, students and children will continue to be sold and accepted by the TTC. Fares remain unchanged; the adult cash fare is $2.75. Tokens cost $22.50 for 10, or $2.25 per trip.
Anyone who has purchased adult tickets from any TTC collector booth in the last week is asked to check their tickets* serial numbers for the following series: A7731069-A7731072 and A7660481-A7660484. If someone believes they are in possession of one of these tickets, they are asked to contact Detective Constable Devereux of Toronto Police Service, 32 Division Fraud Office at 416-808-3207.
photo from Toronto Archives
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Sorry, I guess that was three questions.
I guess this means that they won't be able to justify rationing out tokens in advance of the next fare hike. That's been the only time I've ever bought tickets, and only because the TTC hasn't allowed me to buy anything but...
I've seen a person selling counterfeit tickets for 50 cents at (I think) Yonge & Dundas. That'll put the counterfeit rings out of business.
When I first read this, I wondered, what will they replace tickets with? They really should move to a smart card system, with some brains to it.
At a station, or retailer you can put money on your card, through an ATM like machine, paying with cash, debit or credit card. When you get on a vehicle you swipe your card, unless you just got off another vehicle, it deducts a fare, however if you were just on another vehicle and hit a transfer point between that vehicle and the one you just got on, then it knows it's a transfer, and does NOT deduct a fare.
If you purchase a day, week or monthly pass, it marks your card with such, and knows that you have unlimited trips during that period. This would initially cost the TTC plenty, but would be short term pain for long term gain, not needing to count tickets and tokens, and eliminating transfers would save a lot more over time.
I depend on adult tickets, buying them from a local variety store. I don't ride often enough to warrant a Metropass.
I don't use the subway, but does this mean I'll have to go out of my way to get tokens?
Let me use cash then, equivalent to what I'd pay for a ticket or I'll just drive more often.
TTC ticket agents, i.e. variety stores, do sell tokens already. The TTC has purchased additonal tokens to ensure enough supply once adult tickets are phased out.
Regarding smart cards, we're about five years away from an integrated system with the rest of the GTA. The TTC is working with the province on this new fare system.
Brad Ross
Director of Communications
Toronto Transit Commission
I'm a Mon-Fri communter, and have been using the Metropass ever since the Federal tax refund made it more affordable than buying tickets/tokens, but I used to swear by tickets. Not tokens, tickets.
The problem I had with tokens was that I was always losing the stupid things. Either I kept them in my back pocket where they'd mix around with other change, or I had to get some sort of bulky token holder.
Tickets just went in my wallet nice and easy - all of 'em, and I never lost 'em. It sucked not having the auto-entry at stations, but honestly, the convenience of carrying them outweighed that. I'm sure there's other people out there who felt the same, and this kind of suxors for them.
Then again, if you are a mon-fri commuter, and you're not on the Metropass Discount Plan, you're wasting time and money. If you are a daily commuter, and you're buying a monthly metropass every month, you're wasting money and even more time, since you have to abide by those crazy lineups every month for a new one. Sorry /end rant.
Having been to Montreal in several occasions I have to suggest that Toronto adopt a similar scheme to what Montreal has now: Tickets with magnetic stripes. To gain admittance to the metro requires one use an automated gate to put your ticket in. I don't know about buses, but I'm sure that there would be something similar. YRT has these electronic fareboxes on their buses for quite a while now.
I'm not a big fan of tokens for one good reason: they get lost in my pocket change all too easily. Many a time I have lost tokens because they were included in such pocket change when given to someone else.
I still have to look for that damn token I vacuumed into the dust bag.
If they go ahead with this (and I'm officially indifferent, as I always used tokens anyway), then I hope it leads to a faster smart card roll-out.
But I do have one question:
What will be the effect on corner stores? Will they be selling tokens instead? Do they already?
Comment by Andrae Griffith
June 11, 2008 | 6:50 pm