Thirty-one people were ticketed for trespassing on TTC tracks last year, 76 were fined for smoking on transit agency property and 26 got tickets for allegedly being publicly intoxicated while “Riding the Rocket.” Five customers were alleged to have used “improper” language or gestures, four were ticketed for fighting, and 14 were fined for interfering with other riders’ “enjoyment of the transit system.”Only one was given a ticket for operating a radio without earphones.The stats are just a few highlights from TTC data that details more than a decade’s worth of transit officers’ ticketing activity, which is on the rise as the agency steps up enforcement.The data, which the Star obtained through a freedom of information request, shows the location and alleged offence of more than 80,000 tickets issued by TTC fare inspectors and enforcement officers over the 11-year period between 2008 and the end of 2018. But, over that period, some behaviours commonly cited by TTC riders as particularly infuriating appear to have garnered few tickets. Just 60 people were fined for putting their feet on, lying down on or soiling a vehicle seat. Improperly activating a passenger assistance alarm, which the TTC has cited as a significant cause of subway delays, generated just two tickets. The most common offence during that time was “fail to comply with posted regulations,” which the TTC says usually refers to fare evasion, but can also cover other behaviour prohibited under the transit agency’s Bylaw No. 1. Officers issued 32,927 tickets for that offence in the years covered by the data. The agency has a handful of other offences related to fare evasion, including refusing to pay fare, entering the transit system through a non-designated entrance and using invalid fare media. Together, these offences made up the bulk of tickets issued since 2008, accounting for more than 65,000 of the charges.The most common o ...
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