Researching en Route

I had a meeting at the Erasmus Universitiet today and decided to forgo cycling and take the tram instead. I hopped on the number 4 using my OV-chipkaart that is a pass for all transportation - metro/tram/bus - here in Rotterdam. I changed at the Weena stop to the number 7 tram which ends up at the university. As I boarded tram 7, I again checked in my pass and took an empty seat. Looking around, I could see that there weren't any tram cops (tram cops is the term I use for those people who walk up and down the tram checking riders' passes to ensure that they've paid). According to Pdot, these tram cops were instituted three or four years ago to stop people taking public transport for free (just hopping on and off without paying) and to lessen the occurrence of disturbances on the tram. This is interesting in itself as certain behaviours are expected in public transit spaces. What are they and who decided upon them? Anyway, back to the story, so I sat in my seat going over what I wanted to go over in my meeting when a plain-clothes man walked up to my seat, flashed a badge at me, and asked for my tram pass. This was the same man that I had seen not five minutes ago as I'd entered the tram. He was sitting on the box across from the doors that the tram cops usually sit on...aha! wait a minute! As I handed over my pass I asked if he spoke English, and then asked him if he were part of the stadswacht (city guards who usually walk the streets to ensure safety, etc. see earlier blog) and where his regular 'tram cop' uniform was? He replied that he works for the RET (Rotterdam Transit) and that the 'tram cops' were dressing in 'civilian clothes' today.

I'm not sure if this will become a common occurrence or if this was just a one-time thing but it left me with two feelings: 1. How ingenious! Yes, a bit of me is impressed by the creativity of the RET to foil the attempts of those not paying for public transit. I guess this is still a problem here in Rotterdam. 2. How shady! I also found this approach to policing the semi-public space of the tram to be over the top/too much. Shouldn't policing of the transit be done in a public manner? Is it really necessary to send in under-cover agents to catch people red-handed? I'm sure there are reasons for supporting and denying these actions. I guess I'm a bit of both right now although I’m left wondering how much further these under-cover measures will go? It can be a slippery slope, can't it?