From the Globe & Mail:
The new fine for impoliteness is just one of a number of bylaw changes that went into effect Monday, with riders who prop their feet up on a seat, or those who lay down on a row of seats, now facing potential fines.
The new bylaw concerning priority seating doesn't mean that it's an offence to sit in the area of a bus or subway that's reserved for the disabled; rather, fines can only be issued if a rider acts “in contravention of instructions” from a special constable to remove themselves.
EDIT: Turns out Ottawa's got courtesy by-laws, as well. From the OC Transpo website (H/T to 'anonymous' in the comments):
PRIORITY SEATING
ENTITLEMENT
18. (1) A person with a disability, an expectant mother, a person with a visible need for priority seating, a person with a child in a carriage or stroller, a person with a Priority Seating Card or a person with an Assistant Card is entitled to priority seating on a front bench seat but is not guaranteed a seat.
(2) No person, who is not described in subsection (1), shall fail to surrender a front bench seat to a person entitled to priority seating.
[...]
35. (1) Any person who contravenes any provision of this by-law is guilty of an offence and on conviction is liable to a fine pursuant to the Provincial Offences Act.
4 comments:
http://www.octranspo.com/accessible/Assistance/Priority_Seating.htm
"A passenger who refuses to give up a designated seat to a disabled person is subject to a fine"
But you still hear people complain about it (see the letters pages of the Citizen today and a couple days ago), because they want the by-law people to intervene without them having to ask politely for people to move.
Just because someone sitting in one of those seats doesn't *look* old, pregnant, or disabled, it doesn't necessarily mean they don't have a good reason to be sitting there. Similarly, just because you have a condition entitling you to priority seating, it doesn't mean that it's obvious to others. Ask someone for a seat first, don't go calling 9-1-1.
- RG>
I completely agree with you there RG! Courtesy has to work both ways - you can't just expect it. Some people are just oblivious and if you politely asked they would give it to you in a heartbeat.
I do get annoyed by the feet on the seats thing though. I politely confronted someone on the O-train about it the other day and was almost physically assaulted. There is a fine for putting your feet up and it is displayed as such, but I have never seen anything come of it. I wouldn't mind if a few fines were handed out so that I didn't have to be nagging people all the time not to put their muddy feet on the seats that I sit on every day.
From City of Ottawa BY-LAW NO. 2007 - 268, the "Transit By-law"
18. (1) A person with a disability, an expectant mother, a person with a visible need for priority seating, a person with a child in a carriage or stroller, a person with a Priority Seating Card or a person with an Assistant Card is entitled to priority seating on a front bench seat but is not guaranteed a seat.
(2) No person, who is not described in subsection (1), shall fail to surrender a front bench seat to a person entitled to priority seating.
...
35. (1) Any person who contravenes any provision of this by-law is guilty of an offence and on conviction is liable to a fine pursuant to the Provincial Offences Act.
Thanks for that, Anon@2:41.
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