The head of the TTC has ordered transit officers to stop using specialized forms to collect private information from transit users, following a Star investigation that raised concerns about privacy violations and racial profiling related to the practice. Chief executive officer Rick Leary told the Star he had ordered the TTC’s transit enforcement unit to suspend the use of so-called “718” forms to record information of riders who are suspected of offences like fare evasion but given warnings instead of a ticket following. He said he made the decision following a discussion Wednesday with Toronto police Chief Mark Saunders.The information collected on the forms can include a person’s name, address, driver’s licence number and race. It’s kept in a database for 20 years. As the Star has reported, an analysis of nearly 11 years worth of data on the cards suggests Black riders are documented on the cards in disproportionately high numbers. Read more:TTC’s use of ‘field information’ cards has been steadily increasing since 2012TTC has collected more than 40,000 records on riders who weren’t charged The TTC used to use the same so-called “208” forms the Toronto Police Service employed in the police force’s controversial street checks, also known as carding. Amid public concern over carding disproportionately affecting racialized communities, the police replaced those forms in 2013, but the TTC continued to use them. The agency developed its own “718” forms around 2015, but they remained substantially similar to the police version that the force had scrapped. “The TTC is going to discontinue as of now using that form,” Leary said. However, he said that fare inspectors and enforcement officers would continue to collect the personal information in their notebooks, rather than on specialized cards. The TTC says the information is required so that officers can tell if they ...
|
