70% of Edmonton transit tickets, warnings went to people with no fixed address
CBC
The majority of tickets related to Edmonton's transit system went to people with no fixed address, new data shows.
People found drinking alcohol on or around transit, urinating, smoking, using drugs, loitering, littering, panhandling, trespassing, or not paying a fare may get a ticket or warning from Edmonton's transit peace officers.
These are some of the violations that fall under Edmonton's bylaws and provincial laws.
In 2022, of the total 24,586 tickets and warnings included in these categories, 17,173 — 70 per cent — went to people with no fixed address.
Having no fixed address includes someone identifying as homeless, someone who doesn't or is unwilling to provide an address, a person who has no identification to substantiate an address, or a person who left the scene before the ticket was issued.
Tickets range from $120 for public intoxication to $150 for fare evasion to $600 for trespassing.
The Criminal Trial Lawyers Association requested and received the data for 2022 from the City of Edmonton through a Freedom of Information application.
Chris Wiebe with the CTLA said most people getting tickets can't afford to pay.
"The city has a responsibility to make sure its bylaws reflect reality and right now, the reality of hundreds of our neighbours is that they have nowhere to go," Wiebe said in an interview last week.
"It's untenable, it's cruel and it's not helping anything."
David Jones, the city's manager of community standards and neighbourhoods, says transit peace officers don't target any particular group and their primary role is supporting safe transit.
"Repeated problematic behaviour that creates public safety issues for riders and employees can result in fines or bans from ETS property for a period of 24 hours to up to two years," Jones wrote in an email to CBC News this week.
"It is a counterproductive response to the issue of crime and disorder on transit," Wiebe suggested.
In its request, the CTLA listed specific violations that fall either under provincial law: The Liquor, Gaming and Cannabis Act and Trespass to Premises Act; or the city's Conduct of Transit Passengers Bylaw or the Public Places Bylaw.
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