At the December 12, 2023, City Council meeting, a motion was made directing Administration to provide a report outlining a detailed plan for a two-year trial for the use of fare gates at two transit facilities. This report will be presented at Council’s Urban Planning Committee meeting on September 17, 2024. After reviewing the report, hearing from community members and completing research on fare gates and the experiences of cities already using this approach, Edmonton Transit Riders does not support funding and implementing this project. Improving safety, perceptions of safety, and reliable revenue sources are important goals, however the implementation challenges that would apply to much of our LRT network, no evidence that similar projects have had impacts on safety, and the cost of implementing and operating fare gates, leads us to believe that this pilot is unlikely to address the needs of transit riders. We would be happy to see Council allocate the significant amount of funding required for this pilot on initiatives that have shown to be more effective at improving safety and rider experience throughout our transit system.
System-Wide Compatibility
The report completed by ETS, as well as the lived experience of daily transit riders on our board have identified multiple areas where system-wide, or even partial implementation of fare gates across Edmonton’s LRT system would be difficult, obtrusive, and expensive. The stations selected for this pilot project, Churchill and Belvedere, were identified by ETS as having relatively lower levels of “physical facility constraints and estimated costs of implementation” compared to other LRT stations. Therefore, if Council decides to pursue expanded and permanent implementation of fare gates after the pilot concludes, the costs and obstructions the public will be subjected to will likely be significantly larger than may be experienced in this pilot. Valley Line stations, which will soon make up over 57% of our total LRT stations, are designed to meld with our public realm making fare gate implementation quite challenging. In particular our Downtown stations, which often act as extensions of the sidewalk or public squares, could end up with pedestrian access being limited, especially during festivals and major events. Stations like Century Park, Southgate, and Clareview, provide vital pedestrian connections across busy roads and railway corridors, which could be lost from fare gate implementation, reducing pedestrian safety and accessibility. The recent Stadium Station redevelopment project, a station with identified safety issues, has been redesigned with increased openness and access to the station platform, and underground access points closed in favour of at-grade entrances to help with safety concerns. These changes make implementation at this station more challenging as well. While applicability across the entire system is not strictly necessary, we don’t see the cost of this pilot or its future expansion as the best use of available funding. We think that it is important to test potential solutions that could benefit all or a large majority of transit riders.
Addressing Safety Concerns
Addressing safety concerns has been a main argument for implementing fare gates at LRT stations, however ETS’s report identifies that there is no evidence that fare gates will improve safety, therefore we shouldn’t be using scarce city resources on testing a project with no basis in evidence. We understand that Edmonton has unique context that may make it difficult to apply the findings of other transit systems to our own, however when deciding whether to make a multi-million dollar investment, it is important that we as a City take an evidence-based and fiscally responsible approach. We shouldn’t be implementing projects with no proven ability to accomplish the goals that we want them to solve, and as has been made clear by both the research completed by ETS in preparation for this report, and similar in-depth reports completed for the City of Calgary, fare gates are an incorrect tool to address issues of safety on our LRT system. Furthermore, transit riders have identified stairways and isolated corridors within our underground stations as much more likely locations to experience safety or perception of safety concerns, which are areas that are not considered for safety improvements within the scope of this plan. Improvements to perceptions of safety are a good goal, as they result in improved rider experience and potential increases in ridership as people feel more comfortable using the system. While this report identifies fare gates as a method to increase rider perceptions of safety, given the financial situation the City currently finds itself in, we at Edmonton Transit Riders would prefer to see funds go towards projects that are proven to improve both perceptions and actual safety.
Addressing Fare Evasion
Fare gates are tools used to collect fare payments from riders in order to fund transit services. While ensuring we have the funds needed to run frequent trains and buses is important, ETS does not expect this pilot to improve the financial situation of ETS, as the increased fares recovered through the reduction in fare evasion will not be sufficient to even cover the costs of the program. In a time where transit is already insufficiently funded and resourced, if we are looking to improve fare recovery, we should invest in solutions that actually improve the financial state of ETS.
Alternative Proposals
While fare gates are not the right approach for Edmonton to take in improving the safety and cost recovery of LRT stations and Edmonton transit as a whole, we are very happy that Council indicated willingness to invest over $7 million in improving the transit experience for riders. This pilot project involves more than just fare gates, it also includes hiring and training permanent staff, and the installation of other security measures such as CCTV cameras, which are initiatives we can support. This could be done through the hiring of dedicated station attendants, or through the expansion of COTT teams, who would be much more flexible in their deployment than fare gate attendants, being able to address safety concerns throughout the entirety of stations including directly on platforms and in stairwells. We would also like to see the capital funding that would have been associated with this pilot go towards relocating Arc machines so that they are within the direct walking paths of those entering our LRT stations. Currently the number of Arc machines is either insufficient to cover the amount of entrances within our stations, or are not located within the paths riders take when walking to the train. This makes it much more difficult or cumbersome to pay fares when the station is crowded or when someone is rushing to catch a train. We should be aiming to reduce the friction of our system, making it easier for people to pay their fares and use the train. Improved wayfinding within underground stations may also be an effective means to improve the perception of safety, as riders are less likely to get lost, and have a clear sense of where they need to walk to exit the station as efficiently and quickly as possible.
With the abundance of evidence highlighting how this pilot project is not a fit for our City, we hope Council can make the responsible decision and leave fare gates out of future discussions on how to improve our transit system for riders, and instead commit funding to other evidence-based approaches that will have a far greater positive impact on our transit system.
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