Muni program wasting money

Show me the ticket: Muni fare inspector Larry Parish checks passengers’ transfers on a train. (Examiner file photo)

Muni’s program to catch fare evaders is riddled with flaws, but the cash-strapped transit agency could save up to $3.5 million if it implements sweeping changes, according to a city audit.

The $7.6 million proof-of-payment program is designed to crack down on fare evaders and encourage more people to pay when riding light-rail vehicles. However, Budget Analyst Harvey Rose’s 105-page audit shows the program is plagued by flaws.

Muni has just closed a $128 million budget deficit by raising fares and cutting service. It is also already facing a possible $16 million shortfall because of state budget and other cuts.

Low fines that are “significantly less than most other transit systems” do not deter fare evasion or replace lost revenue, the audit said. Muni recently floated a proposal, supported by Supervisor Bevan Dufty, to increase the fine for first-time offenders from $50 to $75 and to introduce fines of up to $500 for repeat offenders.

Additionally, fine collection is inadequate. Muni did not collect almost half the $1,292,100 in fines and late penalties it levied between February and July of last year, according to the report. Offenders do not pay Muni citations on the spot, but are supposed to provide a name and address to the ticket inspector so a citation can be provided. However, fare inspectors cannot legally compel a person to show valid identification.

The report also said there are too many inspectors on trains during times when Muni has lower ridership. The transit agency should also fully staff booths at turnstiles to help decrease fare evasion at ticket gates, according to the audit.

Fare inspectors themselves also came under scrutiny. The report noted wide discrepancies in the number of times inspectors asked passengers for proof of payment. During a two-year period, inspectors made an average of 4,544 contacts per month and recorded an average of 111 evasion citations and warnings per month. But those numbers differed dramatically from month to month, from as low as 1,866 to as high as as 7,608.

In a response to the audit, the Municipal Transportation Agency said that “many of the recommendations are based on outdated statistics and comparisons with transit agencies that do not operate in comparable service environments.” It disagreed with the audit’s methodology and focus on costs, but conceded it could better document fare inspections and could set contact quotas for inspectors.

Changing for the better

Recommendations to improve Muni’s proof-of-payment program:

- Synchronized deployment of inspectors based on ridership patterns
- Employ periodic fare inspections of all riders in the station and on trains
- Escalating penalties for repeat offenders
- Analyze incident reports quarterly and annually
- Create a digital log of fare enforcement activity
- Develop database to log daily staff performance
- Produce a monthly report on the rate of fare evasion and inspection

Source: City budget analyst report