Has anyone recalled seeing my previous blog on problems with fares on 511's website? The Bay Area's Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC), which manages the 511 website in the Bay Area, has been under my microscope for at least a couple of years with my first mention about the MTC back in March 2014. If you did recall in my investigation, BART's fares has been inaccurate and still does not match the 511 website's trip planner, which could be several dollars off the actual fare paid in cash or Clipper card.
511's trip planner before my blog was up may have created a lot of embarrassment at both the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) and Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) in terms of fare alignment. The former is currently creating the latter's new tracks for the extension to both Milpitas and San Jose's Berryessa station, with construction currently in progress.
As I have been saying, most Bay Area transit agencies have a youth fare policy that defines between the ages of 5 to 17 or 18 years old, but BART's fare alignment and policy does not match that of what most Bay Area transit agencies utilize. Meanwhile, VTA introduced a new fare policy that would upgrade the upper age limit for youths from 17 to 18 years old.
Recent developments hinted by a BART employee at the debut of the Oakland Airport extension pointed to big debates at BART headquarters in Oakland not long after my investigative blog was up online. BART board members were aware of my blog's insight into how BART's fare table is not the same as how transit agencies are using a fare policy for youth, senior, and the disabled. This also applies to commenting on BART's website, which I exposed that the word limit for commenting is only 1000 words.
The employee at the event also told me that extending the upper age limit from 12 to 17 or 18 has been going on for at least a couple of years with no results. Currently, riders between the ages of 13 to 17 must pay the full adult fare to ride BART from one destination to another. Big debates on the fare alignment were at times fierce, pointing to similar fare policies that already took place on almost all transit agencies except BART themselves. There is still no consensus or timeline of whether BART even plans to change their fare policy to match the youth, senior, and disabled with those of most Bay Area transit agencies.
But still, BART has not yet consulted with other transit agencies around the Bay Area to see what their fare policies are, and how BART intends to improve their service based on the age structure and those that are seniors and/or disabled. Even at my last check-up on 511's website, most transit agencies have accurate fare information in all categories except for BART.
Even more disturbing to my findings after my repeated reviews of BART's three booklets that addresses reduced fares reveals that BART has never published a fare table for both the youth and the senior/disabled one review of the booklet after another (the most recent review was in September 2014), despite mentioning of the 62.5% discount mentioned on both BART's website and on several BART-related booklets obtained at the Fremont BART station. Instead, BART opts users to go directly to BART's website and figure out what the actual fare is, rendering 511's website information on BART fares for the youth, senior, and disabled completely useless. Furthermore, for instance, the difference between the two BART booklets between 2012 and 2014 revealed very little change except for the slight increase in adult fares.
A 511 spokesman told me via a private message in my earlier blog stated that BART may have introduced a fare table formula that is not in line with other Bay Area transit agencies, which still questions me about BART's accurate fare information discrepancies published on both BART's website and 511's website. BART's general manager, Grace Crunican, several of BART's board members, and other BART representatives have yet to respond to the fare discrepancies published on 511's website. Most recently, Caltrain and VTA has already passed their actions uniting the upper youth age limit to 18 years old as part of the Bay Area's effort to have a standardized youth age. Both of them joins Golden Gate Transit's standardized youth age on their buses, with possibly more transit agencies around the Bay Area to follow.
San Jose city councilman Ash Klara and transit advocate Chris Lepe offered no comment on my findings related to the structure of BART fares as BART extends to Silicon Valley. Meanwhile, Santa Clara County supervisor Dave Cortese also was involved in the investigation as he was part of the board at the MTC when I was at the groundbreaking for the Bay Area's first Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) at the Mexican Heritage Plaza in San Jose, as well as an event at the Bay Area Chrysanthemum Growers Association. At San Jose State University, San Jose City Councilman Ash Kalra offered no comment. But the question still lingers in the air on not only extensions of BART, but also BART's adjustment on their fare policy for the youth and the senior/disabled. It is still unknown whether BART wants to proceed with an improved look to their new fare policy.
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