BART board approves expansion of fare inspection teams

The BART Board of Directors voted 7-2 to hire 10 additional fare inspectors and expand the teams to nights and weekends.  Fare inspectors increase police presence on-board trains and platforms, deter fare evasion, encourage compliance over time, and help send a message of customer equity- that everyone must pay their fair share. BART currently has six fare inspectors who work during the day on weekdays.

In January, BART Police started enforcing a new Proof of Payment Ordinance allowing fare inspectors to check for valid fare inside the BART system.  Since March, 3,813 citations have been issued. This followed a two-month warning period.

The Board voted to authorize police to hire eight new inspectors (unarmed Community Service Officers) dedicated to nights and weekends at a cost of $900,000 annually.  They also approved releasing two new positions that had already been budgeted for but had been put on hold by the board.  BART Police will work to hire these new Community Service Officers and train and deploy them sometime during the first quarter of the 2019 calendar year.

Fare inspectors systematically check for valid fare within the paid areas including on-board trains, on platforms, near stairs and escalator landings, and outside elevators. Inspectors check person by person, checking every rider, without skipping anyone.  Fare inspectors have no discretion regarding citations. Citations are civil with a fine of $55 for juveniles and $75 for adults.  Community service is an option.

BART’s Independent Police Auditor has conducted random spot checks of body cameras worn and activated by the inspectors and has reviewed hundreds of hours of video and concluded the inspectors are conducting systematic checks and are not singling out individual riders.