Is Free Fare the Way to Workers' Rights? [Poll]

Wednesday morning by an anonymous group demanding an end to service cuts, fare hikes and poor working conditions for employees.

Signs declaring "Free entry" were posted near the service entries of the Fort Hamilton Parkway station, and for at least a little while, commuters were waived through the gates for free by people wearing MTA uniforms.

In some ways, the message was effective—it got people talking, and as they say, all press is good press.

But was forcing the gates the right approach to getting demands met? The signs—save for the exceptionally fine print—looked just like any number of MTA notifications plastered throughout the stations, and many straphangers stumbled through the service gates in a pre-coffee haze, unaware that anything was awry.

Is draining even a small amount of money from an already struggling agency the right way to call attention to workers' rights? Or was it a symbolic gesture that raised awareness for the greater good?