A Vancouver man says he can’t believe what he calls senior shaming that he recently witnessed on a Translink bus.
Jonathan Ross says he got on the No.4 bus near Powell Street and Gore Avenue on the Downtown Eastside Tuesday afternoon.
A woman in her 60s, using a walker, got on the bus ahead of him.
He says many seniors get on the bus in the area, but some are unable to pay.
As soon as they sat down, a recorded message announcing a fare paid zone started coming on, warning passengers who have not paid that they will be fined.
Bus drivers can press the “no fare paid” button if someone does not pay after getting on.
“These messages started going off, one after another,” says Ross. “At first, we thought the bus might be broken, it was so incessant.”
Ross says one of the passengers told him it was happening because the driver was pushing a button over and over again to make the message play.
He says he believes the senior who did not pay was being shamed by the driver, who, in Ross’s view, should be familiar with the fact that many passengers, and particularly many senior passengers, are not able to pay.
Ross says the elderly woman told him that she had not been sent her Compass Card yet and just couldn’t afford to pay the fare.
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He says two other seniors also got on and after some verbal grilling by the driver, were also greeted with the “no fare paid” button and recording being pushed over and over again.
“To have someone getting on, and have the button pushed three times before they even sit down, is just disgusting. It was very, very upsetting to see,” says Ross.
Cheryl Ziola with Translink tells Global News they empathize with the fact that many disadvantaged or disabled persons, including seniors, may be unable to pay their fares, particularly in the Downtown Eastside.
“But, out of duty to all taxpayers, we also have to remind those who don’t pay their fares that they can face fines,” says Ziola. “This also serves as a deterrent to others who deliberately cheat the system and aren’t in one of those disadvantaged groups.”
She says people who can’t afford to pay for transit can often qualify for the subsidized BC Bus Pass program from the provincial government.
“We encourage them to pursue that opportunity,” adds Ziola.
It is not clear if Translink will discipline the driver of the bus.
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