Fare Infraction

In order to dispute a fare infraction ticket, you must: 

• fill out a Notice of Dispute form and

• send the dispute form to the TransLink Fare Infraction Administration office within 14 days of getting the ticket (except as set out in section 4(1)(b) of the Bylaw). 

If you don't fill out the dispute form completely, or information is wrong or missing, the Dispute Screening Officer might reject your dispute. If your dispute is rejected, you still have to pay the ticket.

According to section 253 of the SCBCTA Act, you can appeal your ticket if:

• you didn't commit the infraction as alleged

• the ticket doesn't comply with section 249(1) of the SCBCTA Act and/or

• you feel that relevant information was not submitted in the dispute process (per section 6 of the Bylaw). This is a chance for you to submit information or evidence that you didn't submit during the dispute process.

An arbitrator will review your case in accordance with the SCBCTA Act and the Bylaw. An arbitrator can't reduce the ticketed amount or cancel the ticket for any reason other than the ones listed in section 253 of the SCBCTA Act.

TransLink will provide the arbitrator with a copy of:

• the fare infraction ticket that you're appealing

• the dispute form that you submitted

• the Dispute Screening Representative's decision in the dispute process

• the appeal form that you submitted

• the statement from the fare officer who issued the ticket (if applicable – see the Dispute Process above)

The appeal will be conducted based on the materials listed above, unless the arbitrator directs otherwise.

The arbitrator may ask you, or TransLink, for additional information to be provided in writing, electronically or in person. Any in-person request can be attended by both participants in the appeal process. To make sure everyone is aware of all the material available to the arbitrator, any requests for additional information will be shared with the other participant, and that participant will normally have five (5) business days to respond. If a response is not received within that time limit, the appeal process will continue based on the information previously provided.

In accordance with the SCBCTA Act and the Bylaw, the arbitrator will decide whether or not to cancel your ticket. You'll be notified (via the email or mailing address you provided in your appeal form) what decision has been made and why.

If your ticket isn't cancelled, you still have to pay the fine. If you're not satisfied with the outcome of the appeal process, you can refer the arbitrator's decision to the Provincial Court for review by filling our the Referral for Review form within 30 days from the date that you received the arbitrator's decision (in accordance with section 257 of the SCBCTA Act).

If your referral to the Provincial Court is unsuccessful, surcharges will be applied to the amount owed on the ticket, unless you've paid the amount in full before the date of the applicable surcharge. This is in accordance with sections 3(2) and 3(3) of the Bylaw.

The appeal proceeding is closed to the public and is subject to the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act of British Columbia.

The easiest way to pay your fare infraction is online. You can also pay in person or by mail.

If you don't pay your fare, or if you're caught without proof of payment in a Fare Paid Zone, the fine is $173. The fine increases over time if you don't pay.

There's a dispute process if you think you shouldn't have received a fare infraction ticket. You must tell us you want to dispute your ticket within 14 days of receiving it. A Dispute Screening Representative will review your case and make a decision. If your ticket isn't cancelled, there's an appeal process. An independent arbitrator will review your case and make a final decision about whether or not to cancel your fine. Read the Disputing a Fare Infraction section for all the details.

No, the Dispute Screening Representative or arbitrator cannot change the fine amount. They can only cancel, or not cancel, a fare infraction ticket.

You may refer the decision to the Provincial Court for review under section 257 of the South Coast British Columbia Transportation Authority Act.

If you don't pay your fare infraction ticket, it may be sent to a collection agency and/or you may not be able to get or renew your driver's licence and/or get or renew your vehicle insurance. 180 days after the fare infraction ticket was issued (except as set out in the fare collection bylaw), the ticketed amount will go up by $40 (to $213). 366 days after the ticket was issued, it will go up by $60 more (to $273).

Fare infraction tickets issued before September 4, 2012 are provincial offences. The Province of British Columbia will pursue payment with you. Paying or disputing tickets takes place through ICBC.

There are several measures that encourage people to pay their tickets:

• Ticketed amounts increase over time – the longer someone waits to pay, the more the ticket costs.

• The ticket may be sent to a collection agency.

• Drivers who haven't paid their fare infraction ticket may not be able to get or renew their driver's licence and/or get or renew their vehicle insurance.

Our goal is to encourage people to pay their fares, not collect fines! This process helps ensure that people who don't pay their fares face consequences if caught. We don't expect fines to be a source of revenue to fund operations. Revenue from fines is expected to help pay for running the program. This includes fine administration, dispute resolution and collection costs.

Transit Police and designated Transit Security personnel are able to issue TransLink fare infraction tickets.

The fare collection bylaw can be accessed online, as can the South Coast British Columbia Transportation Authority Act (see Part 12 - Fare Recovery).

Your personal information was collected on the fare infraction ticket for the purpose of enforcement of the South Coast British Columbia Transportation Authority Act and the related fare collection bylaw, including issuing fare infraction tickets and collecting ticketed amounts. The authority for collecting this information is Part 12 of the SCBCTA Act and section 26 of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act. If you have questions about the collection of your personal information, you can contact the TransLink – Dispute Screening Representative in writing at Suite 400 - 287 Nelson's Court, New Westminster, BC V3L 0E7 or by phone at 778.375.6951.