Ontario Liberals say they will cut transit fares to $1 per trip provincewide through 2024 if elected in June.
The plan would apply to all municipal lines, as well as Go Transit and Ontario Northland service, officials said.
The cost of a single trip would be reduced to $1, while monthly passes would cost around $40. Public transportation would also be free for veterans.
In Toronto, it costs an adult $3.25 per trip on the TTC, while a monthly pass costs $156.
The $1 fees would be in effect until January 2024, the party said.
“Our plan will provide families with immediate relief within the first 100 days of being elected by slashing the price of transit to one dollar per trip,” Liberal Leader Steven Del Duca said in a statement.
“Under our plan, someone who hops on the GO train from Oakville to attend a Blue Jays game will save nearly $20 round-trip. And a traveler taking the GO from Whitby to Toronto would save more than $300 a month.”
The party says the plan will cost about $710 million in 2022-23 and about $1.1 billion in 2023-24. According to Grits, the province will disburse the money to replace lost revenue, ensuring that municipalities are not affected.
Del Duca also committed to investing an additional $375 million in annual transit operating funds to support more bus routes, extended service hours, and “more intercity connections.”
It is not clear how the government will pay for this promise: Del Duca has said that his party will publish its platform with all the costs in the coming days. It’s also unclear whether transit fees will increase after 2024.
Speaking to reporters at the Toronto Metro Convention Center on Monday morning, Del Duca would not confirm whether public transit riders will see a fare increase after that deadline. Instead, he said he would work collaboratively with municipal partners and take passenger information into account before making a final decision.
“We want the number of passengers to increase. That’s good for the environment, it’s good for people’s quality of life. It’s good for the economy,” he said.
The Grits also say their plan will take an average of 400,000 cars off the road each day, a number Del Duca says will be explained once its cost platform is released.
The ‘buck-a-ride’ promise is eerily similar to Progressive Conservative leader Doug Ford’s buck-a-beer promise in 2018, which lowered the minimum price of a bottle or can of beer to $1. Breweries offering discount alcohol would have received prime spots in Ontario Liquor Control Board stores in addition to other non-financial incentives.
Ford’s Buck-a-beer plan fell through after a few months, but Del Duca says Buck-a-Ride wouldn’t be a broken promise.
Meanwhile, NDP leader Andrea Horwath said that while life should be more affordable, the Liberals had 15 years to do so before being ousted by the PCs.
“We have seen after 15 years from the Liberals a real disappointment around the promises they make when they run for office compared to what happens when they are in government,” he said.
Del Duca, a former transportation minister under Kathleen Wynne, refuted questions from reporters who asked if he too was responsible for skyrocketing fares, blaming Ontario’s high cost of living on the Ford government, which has been in power for the past four years. .
Reference-www.cp24.com