Anonymous
Post 05/21/2026 13:21     Subject: 70% of WMATA bus riders don't pay
Anonymous wrote:Bus is super cheap. I can understand not wanting to pay for metro subway though. I like to take my kids downtown during the week in the summer and I feel like I'm always charged a rush hour fare of $6.50 no matter when I go. $6.5x 3 people x roundtrip= $39 just for a short trip


If you drive from Rockville to downtown, it's about 45 miles round trip. At the IRS rate of 70 cents a mile, that's $31.50 for gas, wear and tear, etc. and you still probably need to pay for parking. It's fine if you prefer to drive but either way there's a cost.
Anonymous
Post 05/21/2026 12:31     Subject: 70% of WMATA bus riders don't pay
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:What percentage of that is students? They ride free.


They still need to tap their kids ride free card and when they do they are counted as paying. This stat is about people who don't tap a card at all.


My teens said there was a massive line to get the kids ride free card when they came to their HS and then they ran out. They didn’t bother to get one because they said the bus driver doesn’t ever ask to see the card and none of the students bother with it. I told them to do it anyway so the bus driver gets credit for people using that route but they think I’m being too mom-ish about this. So I do think there are a lot of teens that don’t bother to use a card because no one else does and no one asks them for it.


How do you run out? Doesn't the school have some idea of the number of enrolled students?
Anonymous
Post 05/21/2026 11:53     Subject: 70% of WMATA bus riders don't pay
Anonymous wrote:So? Drivers only pay about 20% of the cost of roads. Want to pay European prices for gas?


Nonsense. Drivers pay for roads in a thousand different ways -- the gas tax, registration fees, title fees, inspection fees, license fees, parking fees, traffic fines and of course income taxes, which are mostly paid by the rich and how many rich people do you know who don't have a car?
Anonymous
Post 05/21/2026 11:47     Subject: Re:70% of WMATA bus riders don't pay
DC hates enforcing laws, and loves to make up high-minded-sounding-reasons for its hatred of enforcing laws.
Anonymous
Post 05/21/2026 11:44     Subject: Re:70% of WMATA bus riders don't pay
Anonymous wrote:As an economist, it's actually better for the entire society if you make transportation free. That applies to buses, metro and don't even get me started on how bad the ez-pass system is.


That analysis ignores the Tragedy of the Commons.
Anonymous
Post 05/21/2026 11:36     Subject: 70% of WMATA bus riders don't pay
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:What percentage of that is students? They ride free.


They still need to tap their kids ride free card and when they do they are counted as paying. This stat is about people who don't tap a card at all.


My teens said there was a massive line to get the kids ride free card when they came to their HS and then they ran out. They didn’t bother to get one because they said the bus driver doesn’t ever ask to see the card and none of the students bother with it. I told them to do it anyway so the bus driver gets credit for people using that route but they think I’m being too mom-ish about this. So I do think there are a lot of teens that don’t bother to use a card because no one else does and no one asks them for it.
Anonymous
Post 05/21/2026 11:30     Subject: 70% of WMATA bus riders don't pay
So? Drivers only pay about 20% of the cost of roads. Want to pay European prices for gas?
Anonymous
Post 05/21/2026 11:30     Subject: 70% of WMATA bus riders don't pay
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:They should put transit police on buses and if people don't pay, get them off the bus and arrest if needed. The bus driver should be focused on driving the bus safely and keeping to a schedule, while others can focus on fare enforcement. If word gets around about people actually getting put off buses or arrested, especially by undercover police, people will pay the fare more often. If people get upset when someone gets put off the bus for non-payment, let them tap their credit card and pay for the person to ride...only arrest if the person refuses to get off the bus or becomes violent. Promote things like kids ride free and the half price fares for snap recipients too.




No one should be criminalized for a $3 bus fare. People are being forced to choose between getting to work and feeding their families vs paying $3 every single day which adds up. Obvs choosing to feed yourself and family is more important. What's so hard to understand?


Anyone who qualifies for snap gets half price fare. One hour of work at the DC minimum wage covers a week of half price bus fare. And people would only get arrested if they refuse to get off the bus or threaten/assault someone. Anyone on the bus is free to pay the fare for them. People need clothes to get to work but we still criminalize people who shoplift them.
Anonymous
Post 05/21/2026 11:23     Subject: 70% of WMATA bus riders don't pay
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I rode the buses in the 80s and 90s. They would not let you on the bus without paying your fare. Why did that change?


So you're like 100 now?


NP. The ageism on this board is disgusting. Kids and teens could probably ride the buses safely back then.
Anonymous
Post 05/21/2026 11:20     Subject: 70% of WMATA bus riders don't pay
Anonymous wrote:The issue with free or cheap buses is that you end up with homeless taking them over to sit in there all day long to hang out there. Same thing happens in SF. Then paying customers don’t want to use the buses because they’re dirty and stink, etc.


Rather than letting the homeless ruin everything, we could actually deal with the homeless.
Anonymous
Post 05/21/2026 11:18     Subject: 70% of WMATA bus riders don't pay
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Bus is super cheap. I can understand not wanting to pay for metro subway though. I like to take my kids downtown during the week in the summer and I feel like I'm always charged a rush hour fare of $6.50 no matter when I go. $6.5x 3 people x roundtrip= $39 just for a short trip


$40 to take two kids on the subway is insane.


But that is what it costs to take a couple of kids downtown. It is almost always cheaper to simply drive and pay for a garage.
Anonymous
Post 05/21/2026 11:14     Subject: 70% of WMATA bus riders don't pay
Anonymous wrote:Bus is super cheap. I can understand not wanting to pay for metro subway though. I like to take my kids downtown during the week in the summer and I feel like I'm always charged a rush hour fare of $6.50 no matter when I go. $6.5x 3 people x roundtrip= $39 just for a short trip


$40 to take two kids on the subway is insane.
Anonymous
Post 05/21/2026 10:40     Subject: 70% of WMATA bus riders don't pay
Anonymous wrote:Bus is super cheap. I can understand not wanting to pay for metro subway though. I like to take my kids downtown during the week in the summer and I feel like I'm always charged a rush hour fare of $6.50 no matter when I go. $6.5x 3 people x roundtrip= $39 just for a short trip



Everything would be cheaper if they didn't have a massive problem with people skipping fare. They're charging you more to make up for them. It's a downward spiral that will result in fewer people taking public transportation.
Anonymous
Post 05/21/2026 10:40     Subject: 70% of WMATA bus riders don't pay
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Why are they letting them on the bus? When I was a teenager and I didn't have enough money for the bus they didn't let me on and I was going to WORK.


Did you just try boarding the bus anyway?


Well back then I didn't know what the fare was I think it was $1.40-$1.80? maybe but you had to have exact change too. Forget about it if you had crumpled $1 bills. There was no websites to get this information from. Not at all like today.
Anonymous
Post 05/21/2026 10:34     Subject: 70% of WMATA bus riders don't pay
Anonymous wrote:Bus is super cheap. I can understand not wanting to pay for metro subway though. I like to take my kids downtown during the week in the summer and I feel like I'm always charged a rush hour fare of $6.50 no matter when I go. $6.5x 3 people x roundtrip= $39 just for a short trip


+1 That is exactly why we always drove downtown even though we lived fairly close to the metro station. It would take forever to get there with long wait times and you end up paying for the privilege of a very long trip.