Tijuana, April 2. “I would tell citizens that if the system doesn't work, they should pay the 16-peso fare, not the 20-peso fare . For the 20-peso fare to apply, the reader must be working,” said Jorge Alberto Gutiérrez Topete, director of the Sustainable Mobility Institute (Imos), regarding the practice of some black truck drivers in the Agua Caliente Corridor, who have been reported for demanding cash and not accepting prepaid cards.
The director of Imos was questioned about comments on social media, where public transportation users claim that in the area between 5 and 10, drivers claim that the payment machines for cards are not working , demanding cash payment of 20 pesos.
"That's an old practice. We're already a couple of months away from completely eliminating cash. Unfortunately, there are bad practices among drivers : the more cards we hand out, the more they try to find ways to skimp on cash," said Gutiérrez Topete, who highlighted the state government's efforts to continue issuing the cards.
"We're fighting this practice, which is why we started with Agua Caliente. We need to prove that it's possible. If you look at the SITT, they've never been able to implement the card system ; drivers want cash," he explained.
Regarding the end of cash payments on this route, Gutiérrez Topete estimated that it could happen in the next two months , but emphasized: "I'm not promising it; we'll try in two months. The conditions are in place to eliminate cash."
