ORLANDO, Fla. — Central Florida commuter train SunRail has been missing out on big money for years due to a lack of ticketing enforcement. Now, its operator says it's getting back on track.
Passengers tap their Suncard when they get on, but no one has been making sure they tap when they get off. The state said it has lost money for five years because of it.
Starting next month, SunRail will start charging riders the maximum fare of $5 for a one-way ticket if they don't tap on or off.
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On Thursday, the state will begin checking everyone's ticket. They said they will start by warning people that the new maximum fare of $5 will be put in place in November.
"I feel like I see a lot of people just rushing for the train and they don't tap on and tap off," said Randy Ortiz, a SunRail rider.
Ortiz has been riding the SunRail for the past four years and he said even though it's routine, sometimes he forgets.
"I usually buy the monthly pass, and sometimes when I buy the monthly pass, I forget to tap on and tap off," Ortiz said.
Riders who don't follow the rules will be placed on a hot list that freezes rider accounts until they call customer service.
State officials said they "will not speculate" when asked just how much money has been lost because of the gap in the ticketing system.
Jeffery Morris has been riding SunRail since day one and he believed something was wrong with the ticketing system.
"When you try to use a broken system to enforce fares, it's not fair to the riders," Morris said.
The "broken system" Morris is referring to is how the state collects its money.
It can't charge the full amount for the ride unless riders tap on their card at terminals where they get on and where they get off.
But some riders aren't doing that.
Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings is new to the SunRail Board, and he wasn't happy to hear that, especially since local governments are soon going to be the ones paying for everything, once the state gives SunRail up in 2021.
"Certainly, we want to make sure we know what it is that we are taking over and what those true costs and revenues are," Demings said.
The state is holding the next SunRail meeting on Halloween.
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