Riders: Popular new bus service easy to ride for free

12/2/09
mta
By Heather Haddon

Riders: Popular new bus service easy to ride for free

Riders have flocked to a faster bus service starting to roll out across the boroughs. But making them pay for it hasn’t been as smooth.

“People are riding free,” said Frank Austin, the union representative for Bronx buses.

Riders on the line, called select bus service, pay before boarding at MetroCard machines housed at bus shelters. NYC Transit started the service on the BX12 bus to speed travel between Inwood and Co-Op City last year, and plans to use it on the M15 along First and Second avenues next year.

The problem is they aren’t enough inspectors checking riders’ receipts, especially after the evening rush hour, Austin said.

“They are just getting on,” Austin said.

No inspector came on board during several recent evening rides by amNewYork reporters on the line running along Fordham Road. A fine for riding illegally is $100.

"You can just get on the back without paying. Everybody does it,” said Michael Diaz, 15, a Bronx rider.

Officers, many of which are former transit cops, didn’t give out tickets during the service’s first month to let riders adjust to the service, spokesman Charles Seaton said. Agents have since handed out more than 5,200 tickets. Seaton said enforcement takes place during the bus’s entire 17-hour schedule, but wouldn’t comment on how many inspectors are out on the route.

According to city estimates, the average travel time on the BX12 decreased by 10 percent and ridership was up by 10 percent since the select bus debuted. Riders generally seem to like the service, with a 98 percent satisfaction rate, according to one city survey.

Phoebe Kingsak contributed to this story.
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Riders: Popular new bus service easy to ride for free

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