Every so often a well-meaning member of the public with no knowledge of transit makes a suggestion that sounds good on its face but is really a disaster waiting to happen. San Francisco is currently in the process of deciding whether to allow low-income youth to ride for free. As I explain in the accompanying article, offering free fares in this manner will have terrible consequences . What kind of consequences? Begin with severe overcrowding of buses - if you have to pay nothing to ride, then why not ride all day? Continue with rowdy behavior and vandalism that has had the effect in places that have tried this of driving other passengers away. Before this is implemented, the San Francisco Bay Metropolitan Transportation Commission should interview Austin, Denver, Trenton, and especially Broward County in Florida to find out their experiences with free public transit. Loyal Muni riders, prepare for even more harassment from truant children than you experience currently.
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