The City of North Bay's plan to increase transit fares for the first time in 10 years gained the majority approval of North Bay City Council during its regular meeting on Tuesday.
The cash fare will rise from $3 to $3.25, with 10-trip cards going up from $27 to $29.25. A monthly adult pass will cost $93, up from $86. A student's monthly pass will rise from $71 to $77.
Instead of the proposed July 1 implementation date, the increase will be pushed to Sept. 1. In the meantime, a staff report will look at the impact of the hike on lower-income user groups after Councillors Lana Mitchell and Tanya Vrebosch each advocated to examine the ramifications of raising the "reduced" monthly fee from $61 to $66 in committee level meetings. Both Mitchell and Vrebosch had pushed for more consultation with the user groups.
Council members did receive emails from constituents requesting a socio-economic review of the transit proposal focusing on the demographics of riders and if the age to qualify as a senior should decrease.
"You put the motion forward to amend it," Vrebosch said to her colleagues in chambers on Tuesday, "I'll second it and we'll go from there." There were no takers.
"If you ask the average person, 'Is transit working for you?' They might actually say 'No.' There is a commitment to taking a review of the demographics but how do we start taking a look at asking people, 'Is transit truly working?' Apparently, a lot of people are saying they are struggling with it. Parabus, another thing that may not be working," for the users. "I was going to do an amendment but I'm hoping my works are enough."
When it came time to vote, Mitchell backed the increase and Vrebosch was left without a partner even to amend the motion.
Coun. Mark King found himself at the other end of the spectrum, heavily in favour of the fare hike and citing the federal carbon tax as a factor that is not being discussed enough. He suggested an immediate fare increase.
"This increase doesn't come in until September 1. I certainly would have been supportive to see the increase take place tomorrow. We all know the transit system is costing us $3 million per year, which is subsidized by the property taxpayer. They are carrying the cost of the transit system ... the money has to come from somewhere and the users, unfortunately, will have to pay for the service."
Coun. Mac Bain also voted in favour and stated a transit fare increase should occur during each term of council.
Vrebosch has been against the proposal since budget talks earlier this year, saying she worried about how the hike would affect "people below the poverty line or people who are working poor, and if it's their means to get to work ... the monthly pass is almost $100 ... we are the highest per capita of ODSP recipients."
Under the present fare structure, a disability pensioner with documented proof of current ODSP registration or CPP disability registration issued by the Government of Canada qualifies for the reduced monthly $61 pass, as do seniors aged 65 and up with an Ontario Senior Citizens I.D. issued by the Government of Canada.
Based on North Bay Transit's projections, an estimated increase in transit revenue of $110,696 annually would be realized.
"The last transit fare increase was in 2015. Since that time, we've seen substantial increases in our operating costs, material costs, and fuel costs," Transit Manager Drew Poeta has stressed on multiple occasions in the lead-up to Tuesday's vote. "The cash fare average across the province was $3.75. Currently, we are at $3 and the proposal is a $3.25 fare and it's basically an 8 per cent increase across all categories to match that."
See the full fare increase breakdown below:
