
Should Public Transit Be Free? More Cities Say, Why Not? - crazygringo
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/14/us/free-public-transit.html
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crazygringo
I see no argument why, for example, the NYC subway/bus shouldn't be free for
all.

Literally everybody needs to get around the city. But a one-size-fits-all fare
hits the poor _far_ harder than the rich.

Just fund it with city taxes that can be made progressive, so each billionaire
can subsidize the cost of 1,000 others, who are probably their employees
anyways.

And for those who ask "what about visitors/foreigners?!", the answer is easy
-- just build it into the hotel tax. Raise it by $10/day, which will cover
close to 2 round-trips.

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Ghjklov
This made me think, are bus drivers legally allowed to kick off someone who is
sleeping indefinitely on the bus or otherwise just being loud, obnoxious,
offensive smelling, etc?

I wonder if public transit were free, if I would get to see more homeless
people on the bus as a result. For reference, the bus I typically take is the
Dash which only costs 50 cents at most. Not that big of a deal, and right now
there are rarely any homeless who take it. Some people who do stay too long
get reprimanded by the bus driver, but I have never seen the bus driver do
anything beyond that (since I'm gone before then). I have nothing against
homeless persons, but seeing (and smelling) them regularly on my commute to
work would quickly inspire me (and likely others) to find alternatives like
Uber, working hard to get a car, walking, cycling, etc.

