The issue of rising fares shows how different the TTC and GO Transit
are. Any threat of price hikes for TTC tokens and Metropasses raises
concerns about lost ridership and the effect on riders with fixed
incomes. On the other hand, GO users expect to pay more every
spring. The transit agency’s board will today look at a flat 15 cent
increase to all fares, as well as a report on charging commuters to
use the system’s 40,000 parking spaces.
Transit staff
looked at the parking charge idea as a way of raising revenue, but
concluded it would turn off too many riders, and the board looks
unlikely to support the plan. The fare hike is another story.
Provincial
transportation minister Harinder Takhar has the final say on GO
prices, and his spokesperson Danna O’Brien told In Transit on
Wednesday, “We’d like to encourage the GO board to look at other
options.” GO, like the TTC, relies on riders to pay over 80% of the
cost to run the system.
Managing director
Gary McNeil tells In Transit that if GO does not increase fares, “We
will have to ‘find’ an additional $6 million somewhere else --
either through service cutbacks, not implementing new or improved
services, or the province increasing our subsidy.” The transit
agency is eager to get moving on planned improvements to its
network, and while new tracks and trains are not paid for from
fares, increased service is.
Unlike its local
counterparts across the GTA, the regional transit authority won’t
lose customers from a fare hike -- in fact, ridership is expected to
rise 5.4% next year. According to McNeil, “People do not want to pay
(higher fares), but ... they realize that GO is still a bargain
compared to driving.”
Commuters
contemplating their travel options may also take into account the
prospect of surging gasoline prices this spring. Bulging trains are
an indication of the strong demand for GO’s services -- and how easy
it will be to attract new customers if planned expansions actually
get built.
Currently, the
lowest fare is $3.00, and it costs $8.30 for a trip from Hamilton to
Union Station. The average ride is $5.30, which is the equivalent of
travelling from Oakville to downtown Toronto. If fares rise a flat
15 cents, those going shorter distances will see a relatively higher
increase -- around 5 per cent. That compares to less than 2 per cent
for long-haul commuters. Should prices increase proportionately?
Until 1995, GO
raised fares by a percentage, reports Mr. McNeil. Back then, “the
longer distance fares had the largest increase, and there was more
of a ridership loss in this category. Even worse, the loss of long
distance riders had a greater impact on our operating subsidy, as
they generate the most revenue. GO is primarily a long distance
transportation service provider -- our average customer travels 32
kilometers.”
Relatively few GO
patrons board at stations within the City of Toronto, and local
commuters do not usually consider GO an option. Yet in the central
area of many European cities, riders pay the same price to use local
transit as commuter rail. In Montreal, local transit fares are
allowed on a limited portion of the regional train network, giving
riders a speedy, if less frequent option.
Toronto Mayor
David Miller does not sit on the GO board, but transportation
minister Takhar is reportedly set to appoint new members. Miller
believes his city should better represented, adding that the mayor
of Toronto or “his designate” should have a direct say in GO
affairs. He says, “GO, like the TTC, faces a funding challenge. I
think it’s got a range of unpalatable choices before it. One thing I
think it should look at is -- particularly in places like
Scarborough -- is there an opportunity for people in Toronto to
perhaps pay a little less?”
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