Vancouver mayoral candidate Gregor Robertson is coming under fire for failing to pay a ticket for SkyTrain fare evasion.

Robertson says he mistakenly bought a one zone ticket for two zone ride last June. He was ticketed by SkyTrain police, and because he thinks the $173 fine is too high, he's fighting it in court.

Robertson said he made an honest mistake. "I pushed the wrong button,'' he said.

"I thought I'll go through the system as a citizen and raise my concerns about the $173 fine for a one dollar mistake and see if I can help make change and make the system more fair," Robertson said.

But one of his main opponents in this month's Vancouver mayoral elections, thinks Robertson is setting a bad example by not paying up.

"This is not a good example for the mayor to set,'' said Peter Ladner. "The mayor makes the laws, the mayor should obey the laws,'' he said.

Robertson's court date is December 4rd.

He says he will pay the ticket, but wants an opportunity to raise his concern about the size of the fine.

With a report by CTV British Columbia's Shannon Paterson