Riders skipping out on bus fares is one of the biggest complaints with which Metro is dealing these days.
Through a public access to records request, the News4 I-Team found the Metrobus lines with the most fare evasion – and the numbers are eyepopping.
The X2 line running from Lafayette Square to the Minnesota Avenue Metro station had the most, with more than 914,000 reported fare evaders in 2021.
The 70 bus line between Silver Spring and Archives had more than 724,000, and the B2 line between Anacostia and Mount Rainier had more than 667,000 reported fare evasions.
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“We want people to respect that this is a community system, and everyone, I think, we’ve heard loud and clear – if I’m paying, why are you not paying?” Metro GM Randy Clarke said.
New tactics are on the way, Clarke said.
“We have more information coming out on fare enforcement – probably next week – and citations are certainly part of that process,” he said.
Transportation
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But in D.C., the council voted to decriminalize fare evasion, though it is still a civil penalty.
Council member Charles Allen says Metro should be taking action.
“You are not allowed to fare evade,” he said. “WMATA can enforce it, if they would, and they have the absolute ability right now to stop someone from fare evading, remove them from the system, issue them a citation, and they haven’t done that.”
Metro’s bus operators and station managers are instructed not to get involved in fare evasion disputes. Metro Transit Police are supposed to enforce the rule.
Some Metro riders are frustrated, including Larry Howard, who budgets about $30 a month to pay for bus rides.
“It’s disgusting,” Howard said. “You notice about every day, going to work and coming in.”
