TTC Employee Arrested for Creating and Selling Fake Tickets
The TTC, also known as The Better Way, hasn't been able to catch a break recently, as word has been released of yet another TTC employee indiscretion. This time it wasn't a driver starting happy hour a few hours too early, or a mysterious streetcar collision at Bay and Dundas.
It was an employee was arrested at Wilson Station for allegedly possessing and selling counterfeit tickets.
While this is the first time that the TTC Special Constables have investigated a TTC employee for this charge, it wasn't the first arrest related to forgery this year. Another forgery ring was busted in March distributing very realistic fakes without any of the equipment that the TTC employee would have access to. So one can imagine that the tickets the TTC employee was selling from her booth were close to the real deal. The above image, provided to us by the TTC, shows forged tickets aside a real one, which demonstrates how difficult spotting a forged ticket can be (the only real ticket is 4B).
This and other forgery investigations have reopened the focus and discussion on how to combat forged tickets which cost the TTC anywhere from $3.6 - $4.8 million in fares a year. One idea is to eliminate tickets completely and (hopefully) move towards a pass system or fare card in the near future, although in my experience, anybody living downtown who frequents any alternate exits rarely uses tickets anyway.
It looks like adult tickets will be phased out by September. The token prevails once again.
Lead photo: Red & Yellows at Wilson Station by blogTO flickr-pooler Frigante
TTC ticket image courtesy of the TTC.
Comments (12)
I always have a few tickets in my wallet. I guess I'd better lose the habit of relying on there always being transit fare in my back pocket.
I don't have a coin pocket in my wallet, and have lost plenty of tokens as a result. I suppose I could buy a new wallet, and carry tokens though.
I guess that employee is toast
thank god the union didn't have any power in this situation
I am lucky to live in a convenient area where I can walk to most areas ... rarely use the ttc
Anyone know of any token holders that are flat? Sort of credit card sized but a bit thicker, it would slot the tokens in flat rows and would be more convenient to put in your pocket, with less loss...?
if not, someone please invent this - there's a market for it!
Once again I'm going to use Montreal's STM as an example of smarter thinking.
They don't use tokens at all, thus avoiding Home Depot having to usher a recall of specific sized washers, and the tickets have a magnetic strip down the middle, which you place into a slot when you transfer inside a metro station.
I just cannot understand the need to continue using an antiquated system which has been proven ineffective and costly.
So, was the employee handing out fake tickets as real ones and pocketing the cash? I'm curious how this worked. You'd think the supervisors would notice after a while that fewer tickets were being sold during one particular employee's shifts.
Who am I kidding. Like the supervisors even pay attention.
"Once again I'm going to use Montreal's STM as an example of smarter thinking."
That's what you get when you have a system that receives adequate funding. It's not 'smarter' - unless by smarter you mean located in a province that receives a disproportionate amount of funding.
To the commenter above who says "you could use tokens": Just one itty bitty problem: tokens are not available throughout the city at corner stores like they SHOULD be.
Hey, thanks for using my photo!
Oh, and RE: the TTC, I must say that service seems to have improved (I take two buses and travel on two subway lines to get to and from work every day) but I still wonder about how efficient their internal processes are, especially when I see two or three empty "sorry not in service" buses every day wasting precious fuel!
This is just a case of moronic stupidity and ugly greed, however ... it's no secret that TTC employees are paid well - why bite the hand that feeds you?
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