Translink has been recently campaigning against the re-selling of transit fares. This page grudgingly concedes the rationale behind this campaign, but would like to point out that ideally, all public transit should be directly subsidized though tax revenues. Every UBC student has to pay for a U-Pass, but because every student pays it's only $22 a month. Imagine the price and the level of service if a that kind of funding was available across the Lower Mainland.
Dictating that passengers buy their fares from authorized sources only makes sense in that the money goes directly back into the transit system. However, this page takes exception to Translink's prohibition against giving away fares. Possession of my bus transfer or SkyTrain ticket being 9/10 of the law, who has the right to tell me what to do with it when I'm done with it? If somebody convinces me that they desperately need a ride somewhere, why should Translink stop me from helping that person out? Assuming that I'm giving a ticket to someone for resale equals an assumption of my guilt and the guilt of the person I give the ticket to.
The last time this page checked, Canada's legal system still ran on the pretext of being innocent until proven guilty. Translink may need to protect their revenues, but in doing so they must respect the rights of the people using the system, including those who may not be able to afford to, and those who want to help them on their way.
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