Questions around loitering rules and age checks on riders came up, however a Calgary city council committee unanimously approved potential changes to its transit bylaw.

The amendments to the transit safety bylaw, presented at the Sept. 12 Community Development Committee (CDC) meeting, were recommended after Calgary Transit heard from more than 800 of its more than 2,500 transit operators.  They will be up for final approval at the Sept. 17 meeting of Calgary city council.

Among the proposed amendments were the addition of a definition to loitering behaviour, an offence for non-destination uses (or when a person rides transit without an intended destination), authority for peace officers to request proof of age for those commuters 12-years old and under, and the addition of an offense for verbal harassment or threats to operators, riders and staff.

Ward 5 Coun. Raj Dhaliwal first raised the question of how Calgary Transit was going to “screen” different users who would be considered loitering on site.

According to the proposed changes: “Loiter” means to linger on or remain on transit property without the express purpose of using the transit system for transportation regardless of whether the person has a valid ticket.

“I think we’re just giving the officers the tool to have discretion given the situation of the concern that arises,” said Acting Chief of Transit Public Safety Marcia Gonder.

“The loitering that we see is typically on platforms and around stations, so we’re addressing the behaviour and not the person based on the circumstances.”

Ward 7 Coun. Terry Wong felt there could be a massaging of the wording in the bylaw to ensure clarity to both transit safety personnel and to the public.

“I think the bylaws are actually moving the needle in the right direction,” Wong said.

“I think there’s a couple words that can be added to improve it, to add greater clarity and also greater discretion of roles for peace officers, but also greater awareness in the public of what is permissible or not.”

Age ID not for the youngsters: Coun. Walcott

Under the proposed new rules, identification can be requested for those riders under the age of 12. Calgary has a program in place where commuters 12 and under get to ride Calgary Transit for free.

“Previously, we weren’t able to ask for proof of age, and so it historically allowed individuals to say, ‘I’m 12 and under and do whatever it is that they wanted to do,” said Acting Chief Gonder.  

“It gives us the authority to go in and ask for proof of age, and if you don’t provide proof of age, then we are able to write a violation ticket for that.”

Ward 8 Coun. Courtney Walcott, who is chair of the CDC, said that they aren’t going to be requesting the ID of Calgary’s youngsters riding the rails. This measure is for a different crowd, Walcott said.

“I’ll put it this way. It’s not really for (kids),” he said.

“We’re not checking IDs for 10-year-olds. It’s actually the opposite direction. The analogy I’ve continued to use is the liquor store sign, ‘We reserve the right to check IDs of anyone who looks under 25.’ Similar story, we reserve the right to check IDs of someone who looks 30, who says that they’re 12.”

The proposed bylaw changes also remove the time restrictions for bikes being allowed on CTrains. That comes after a successful extended pilot project that had minimal impacts on overcrowding during peak times.

It also added offences for altered or recreation of valid transit passes and for the possession of visible weapons on transit.