Fare or Fair

In a fare strike, passengers ride the bus, but do not pay the fare.

Nobody has to do anything they don't normally do. Ride the bus wherever you normally go, just like you do every day. But, when you get on, don't pay.

The object of a fare strike is to convince Muni that they are going to lose more money because of the fare strike than they are going to gain by raising the fare and cutting service. This is entirely possible if enough people, over time, participate in the fare strike.

Get on the bus anyway you can. Go in the front door or the back door, whatever feels right to you. Don't cause a scene. Just don't pay.

Whatever you do, be polite to the driver. They are not the enemy. They have a very difficult and stressful job. Fare hikes, service cuts and layoffs make their job more difficult. Many, if not most, of the drivers are sympathetic to our efforts. Together, riders and drivers united, we can win.

It is Muni policy that the drivers should ask you to pay the fare, but just drive on if you don't pay and don't cause a scene. The reason for this policy is that the whole system would come to a halt if busses didn't move everytime somebody didn't pay. Muni is a big system, and some individual drivers may act outside of Muni policy. But most will obey the policy and drive on when you don't pay, because that is exactly what they are supposed to do.

Muni does have a few fare inspectors that may ask for proof of payment. Muni has not hired new fare inspectors in response to our strike. They already have too few fare inspectors to adequately police the system. If you are approached by a Muni fare inspector, again, be polite. They are just doing their job. Walk away from them if you can, again without causing a scene. If you get a ticket, get in touch with our legal team. They will do everything they can to make tickets go away. Click here for more information on our legal team.

Remember, a fare strike is very simple. Ride the bus like you always do. Just don't pay.