If Toronto city
councillors vote down two proposed taxes next Monday, the impact on
the TTC could be severe. How severe depends on whom you believe, but
it’s hard to see the transit system escaping major damage if council
carves hundreds of millions from the city budget.
The TTC has
already postponed plans to increase bus capacity and a “No” vote
could kill even modest measures to deal with overcrowding, let alone
address pent-up demand across 416.
Despite the
fare hike that takes effect in November, the TTC could hold another
emergency meeting next week to decide where to start cutting. This
revives the threat of cancelling bus routes across Toronto plus
further fare hikes.
Those who
believe there’s a lot of waste at city hall, or for that matter at
the TTC, have to demonstrate how they propose to secure as much as
$400 million in savings yearly, without throwing the city into
deeper crisis. Claims that Toronto must get its “house in order” may
be partly mollified if Mayor David Miller creates a panel of
respected outsiders to report on fiscal practices of the city. It’s
not clear if agencies like the TTC are included, but they should be
eventually.
Already
commission vice-chair Joe Mihevc has asked staff to show how the
transit agency compares with public and private peers in terms of
wages and efficiency. Hopefully this will lead to a more informed
debate than we’ve had so far about things like labour costs and how
a modern public transit agency can thrive despite financial
constraints.
Further, TTC
critics and defenders alike need easy access to the books, in a
user-friendly way. For example, Toronto’s Auditor General has a
fraud and waste hotline (you can get details on the city’s website,
toronto.ca) and the TTC’s own audit team needs to do likewise. The
next step is to provide investigation results, perhaps even adding a
page to ttc.ca for Frequently Asked Questions about waste.
Ironically this
could require extra money, and the savings might pale in comparison
to the city’s looming budget needs, but riders or employees would
know whether their complaints are being examined seriously.
Hot-button topics include reducing fare evasion and expanding
advertising on the system. Or, why did the TTC buy its supervisors
powerful Dodge Chargers to get around the city? Even small items,
like printing fewer paper transfers, could be addressed -- as well
as highlighting actual savings gleaned via suggestions from the
public or staff.
Nobody wants to
get bogged down in minor issues when the future of our city’s
mobility is at risk, so let’s create a proper place to discuss waste
and then focus on the bigger decisions.