Call it a birthday celebration gone wrong: a young man received numerous fines from Metro Vancouver’s Transit Police on his birthday after taking an “incredibly stupid” ride on the exterior of a SkyTrain.
The incident occurred just after midnight on Dec. 9, when police were notified the young man was riding on the coupler head, the mechanism on the outside of trains that keeps the individual cars connected, on a SkyTrain going eastbound to Royal Oak Station.
Transit Police say the man jumped onto the platform at Royal Oak station and got inside another train – but was intercepted by authorities at 22nd Street Station.
The “slightly intoxicated” man, a resident of Chilliwack, then told police he was celebrating his 20th birthday. He was issued a $115 violation ticket for riding on the outside of a train, as well as a $173 ticket for no paid fare.
Transit Police spokesperson Anne Drennan called the incident “disturbing,” noting that the man was warned about the extreme danger of his actions.
“If for any reason he had slipped, he would almost certainly have fallen under the train – and you can imagine what that would do,” Drennan said. “The message here is that it was an incredibly stupid thing to do.”
The incident was not the first of its kind in recent days.
Around 1:20 a.m. on Dec. 4, police were notified that an incoming SkyTrain at Stadium Station had two people riding outside the train.
Police detained the two riders, teens aged 13 and 14 from Vancouver and Coquitlam respectively.
The boys were picked up by their parents, and no tickets were issued because of their young age.
“It’s one of those crazy things only a young person would try,” said Drennan, noting these incidents are rare, and two in within a short time period is concerning. “It’s just really silly and dangerous.”
Anyone spotting someone riding on the outside of a train is asked to advise Transit Police immediately by texting 87 77 77, or calling 604-515-8300.
