If you ever visit NYC, there is a little hidden
surprise when you take the six train.
A passenger can remain on the train as it turns around
in order to view a stop that has not been in operation since 1954. The old
‘City Hall’ stop is a huge hit amongst tourists, but here is the problem: the
turnaround is debatably legal. Despite many signs, blog posts, news reports and
people telling me that it is legal, a friend and I recently received tickets
for making this journey. The tickets were $50 each, and I was really upset
because it is in fact not illegal to take this journey. I fought the case in
the Transit Adjudication Bureau (TAB) court and you guessed it, I lost! This
post isn’t about whether riding the six train around the turnaround is legal or
not (since we know it is legal), but whether the cost of fighting a ticket is
worth your time and money.
Time Is Money
Let’s assume you, like me, think you are going to win
this ticket. You are so sure, that the probability of winning the ticket is I
P(Winning) = 1. Winning in this case means you do not have to pay the ticket,
so your total fine cost = 0. However, you do have to sit in the misery (and boy
do I mean misery), of the TAB offices for three hours while you dispute your
case.
So EVEN if you know you are going to win, it is still
going to cost you:
Loss
= 0 + 3*[Hourly Rate].
If you wanted your loss to be less than the cost of
your ticket, you could solve the equation and your hourly rate would need to be
less that $16 just to fight the ticket knowing you are going to win.
But what if you don’t, then how much would need to
make?
How to read this graph: it is only beneficial if your
salary is below that black line at that probability. So if you are 75% sure you
are going to win the case, your hourly rate would need to be less than $12.
If you are say 50% sure and make minimum wage, it is
not worth your time. Of course, I’m assuming you would be working from 9-3 (the
only hours of operation for TAB), and that you are using your Paid Time Off as
a factor.
In a strictly cost-benefit analysis, the cost of
fighting a ticket is rarely worth it. So if you are a rational human being,
just pay the ticket and move on. But if you want to prove a point to the system
(like I did), then go ahead and fight it. Right?
Freedom and Democracy
Will Prevail
When I fought the ticket I knew I was going to ‘lose’
money (as in time), but what is the cost of Justice and knowing that the court
system got it right? I mean sure, the colonists threw a lot of tea in the ocean
that day, but that tea represented the price of freedom and democracy, and that
really does not have a price.
The sad part is, the TAB court system was not
accepting of these ‘point-makers’ or freedom fighters. The room holds about 250
people, and it was packed. It gave me the sense that the judges do not really
care about the cases: they are simply doing their jobs. They are only safety
nets so that you don’t sue the TAB for being unconstitutional. They have this
system in place because they have to, not because they are trying to change the
world. Sadly, when you fight a ticket, you are just one person in a sea of
humans. The time within the office is very formal. Though you are attempting to
fight your case as an injustice, you are treated as if you are begging them to
not fine you.
Sometimes We Do Win
Occasionally people decide to hop over subway turnstiles
in order to avoid paying a fare. In NYC you do not need a card to exit the
system, only to enter it. Some people know that it is actually smarter to risk a
ticket than to pay the fare. The maximum ticket a TAB officer can give is $100
- normally the penalty for jumping the turnstile. The cost of a ride is $2.50,
so again the simple math is
Loss = cost*risk
100 = 2.5(#times jumping)
As long as you only get caught once every 40 times, it
is actually smarter for you to jump the gate. That means if you get caught
about once a month, it may be smarter to risk it and jump the turnstile and not
pay the MTA machine. (Can you tell I’m bitter yet?)
Why The MTA SHOULD Ticket
The MTA almost surely has a cost benefit to this: what
is the amount of tickets they can issue before the government gets involved? If
the MTA keeps their ticket processing capacity the same, but issues more
tickets, it means less people would be willing to wait longer and longer hours
at TAB just to fight a $50-$100 ticket.
Hours
to wait = #tickets*(Processing time per judge)
The processing time per judge would likely remain the
same, but if the number of tickets issued increases, so do the hours of wait
time. The graph above is based off my single sample of 3 hours, but what if
that time went up to 4 hours? That would mean even if I was 100% sure I would
win, it would only be worth my time if I made less than $12.50 per hour. So the
MTA should increase the number of tickets they issue, thus increasing the hours
to wait at TAB, and then decreasing the probability someone will fight a ticket.
This is a fine line though, because if the MTA sets
the ticket-issuing number too high, the government (hopefully) would come in
and regulate the system by enforcing a swifter trial or by making the ticketing
rules stricter and thus decreasing the number of tickets issued.
Conclusion
If you ever get a ticket, just pay it. Or at the very
least, fight the ticket and blog about it. Maybe I actually got something out
the ticket (which I’m finally going to pay). I have a story to tell at bars,
coffee shops, and most importantly, on my blog. This post is pretty cynical and
critical of the MTA, which it naturally should be. I actually don’t mind the
subway too much. Sure it smells like pee 90% of the time. It also manages to
remain 110 degrees under ground despite it only being 60 degrees outside. Sure
there are something like 113 track fires per year, but running the MTA is not
easy, so I’ll be kinder next time I take that six train around.
