Public transit fraud | Drivers denounce users who do not pay

More and more users of public transport in the metropolis are boarding without paying, denouncing drivers and their union, demanding better surveillance. The Société de transport de Montréal (STM), for its part, says it is in action, but admits that it cannot fully document the phenomenon.

“Many of us have observed that it has really gotten worse over the past year and a half in particular. On some bus lines in particular, it’s really atrocious: it comes in from all sides, it no longer pays. It’s as if it had become the last concern of many customers”, breathes an experienced driver, who did not wish to identify himself for fear of reprisals from his employer.

At a time when “governments are fighting to keep transport companies alive”, adds this employee, “it’s ironic that we tolerate that at the same time”. “We understand that the drivers don’t have to intervene, that it’s not always worth it, and that there is a financial balance behind it, but at some point, we have to be consistent and tackle that” , continues this driver.

The STM bus drivers’ union also claims that the phenomenon is “worsening” in certain sectors of Montreal. In 2019, elected officials had also asked the auditor general of Montreal to investigate the losses caused by fraud at the STM, but this never took place.

According to him, the solution is simple. “It would take more officers in the sectors that we identify as problematic. But above all, that they issue tickets! “, hammers the union leader again. “If there was even a little more surveillance, people wouldn’t try it often. There, everyone knows that there is a lack of station agents, it shows, ”continues Mr. Tagliaferri.

In his view, the recent reductions in services, including the announced end of the STM’s “10-minute MAX” bus service, “make sure to boost ridership on buses and in the métro”. “The situation is getting worse and worse. We need to reinvest massively in our networks,” continues the union leader.

In addition, he recalls, buses continue to welcome passengers free of charge due to breakdowns in their payment terminal, a problem first reported by The Press in January which continues to get worse, according to the union. “The STM still releases vehicles where there are these issues, it has no choice. But it definitely contributes to the problem, ”insists Mr. Tagliaferri.

“Complex to calculate”

At the STM, spokesperson Philippe Déry indicates that “the notion of financial loss caused by fraud is complex to calculate, since it requires arriving at a reliable and representative fraud index”. “Such an index necessarily involves several statistical biases and the STM does not consider it to be a sufficiently reliable indicator to be monitored or used,” he specifies straight away.

Nevertheless, this index still existed a few years ago, and established the fraud rate at “between 1 and 2%, which is not critical”, continues Mr. Déry. Since then, “nothing indicates that there have been any significant changes since then, but we are monitoring the observations of our employees in the field closely, as well as the results of our title control operations”.

For Jean-Philippe Meloche, professor at the School of Urban Planning and Landscape Architecture at the University of Montreal, fraud control “is always a question of balance”.

“The STM must know roughly how much they lose with people who don’t pay. And eventually, if they lose too much money with that, they will reinvest in coercion, surveillance. But if they don’t do it more now, it’s probably because the benefit isn’t worth it, because the potential gain isn’t worth the money that more measures would cost,” he said. .

It is not known to date what losses can lead to fraud or the investments that it would require to put an end to it. “We cannot only segregate costs or budgets related to fraud prevention. The title control operations carried out by the special constables, which represent about 30% of their tasks, play an important role, but also the investments in the title control system, the implementation of OPUS cards with photo for customers at reduced rate, etc. “, illustrates Mr. Déry.

Since the implementation of the OPUS system in 2008, the STM estimates that “fraud has reduced by more than half”. Several factors have contributed to this reduction, including the automated management of connections and that of the reduced rate. “Other measures are also in place, in particular title control operations carried out by our inspectors, randomly, but also by specifically targeting certain problematic sectors”, concludes the spokesperson.