So the Sheriffs have become more aggressive about checking passes recently on the Red and Gold Lines. At times it seems like they are at the Union Station TAP stations at the Red Line and at the top of the stairs at the Gold Line every other day. In about 30 minutes I tap my card when entering the Red Line, tap my card to the sheriff's card reader, tap my card at the Gold Line and tap my card on another sheriff's card reader.
This has frustrated me more than once. Many times the one or two sheriffs with the card readers are off talking to someone else and not paying attention for people coming toward them. The process of a flood of people trying to tap their cards at once has caused me to miss trains more than once. As it is, the amount of time I spend waiting for a transfer train can almost half of to equal to what it would take me to drive to work. Some days it is difficult not to think about this.
Today I also realized that every cent on making sure me, a paying customer (no, I've never been on the train before without paying!!) actually did pay is a wasted cent. I already paid. They aren't going to get anymore unless something horrible happens or I lose my ticket. So does that mean the money they spent on making sure me and all the others that paid actually did pay is still less than what they gain by finding the few people that actually didn't buy a pass or just had a crappy day? Suddenly riding the train took on such a different level of stress. They're waiting for me to fail so they can take as much money as possible from me? They don't care if me, a paying MTA patron, gets so fed up with the delays that I stop using their transportation? Losing that money is more than worth the money made by ticketing people after paying for the 8-10 sheriffs standing around to check my pass?
The only other explanation I can come up with is that they are gaining some other form of information by making this happen that makes the cost of sheriffs checking my pass multiple times in a day worthwhile. Maybe this is how they force some data to be collected (seeing how long I'm on the train, where I am going, how long it takes me to get to the next connection, how long they need you to stand in one place for them to get the desired image of you.)
Either way, it leaves a bad taste in my mouth. When I questioned one of the sheriffs about it today she replied "Well this is what you have to do at the airport!" That's hardly a reason to bother your paying customers multiple times in a day and delay them, but I'd also never ride an airplane every single day, partially because it is such a hassle. I don't think that's the sort of idea they want to promote.
I've always been pretty bull headed. It's something I can't deny. I've always been one to question things, which can be frustrating to myself and others. I work in an industry that leaves me a bit more attuned to these types of situations as well. I sometimes wonder how many things would be different about Los Angeles public transportation, sidewalks and bike paths if the people making decisions about them had to also utilize them every day.
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Did you put in a complaint to Metro re: this delay / missing the train thing due to the inattentive checkers that create clogged lines of people waiting to TAP?
The checkers' job's necessary since the idea's to catch the people who are getting free rides that YOU are paying for. Why should you be paying for freeloaders? (you can take the glass half empty view you currently have, which is that your tax dollars are going to waste paying the checkers, or you can take the glass half full view to recognize that the checkers may be saving you money by encouraging all to pay for the ride).
In any case, it seems your frustration is mostly about the fact that the checkers create a line clog / further delays -- a very legitimate complaint. I'd take that to Metro.
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