Bus Fare Increase Unfair to Working Families
Nov 29, 2017
Last week the City of Winnipeg released its 2018 budget, and it included some bad news for those who depend on Winnipeg Transit. Bus fares are going up 25 cents from $2.70 to $2.95 while monthly fares will jump from $90.50 to $100.10. Seniors will have to dish out more too, as their fees will jump 22 cents from $1.18 to $1.30 per trip. To put this into perspective, if you buy a regular adult monthly pass every month of the year, you’ll be paying $115.00 dollars more annually.
That’s a pretty hefty increase that will hurt working families, students and seniors with mobility issues. It also unfairly penalizes those trying to make environmentally sound decisions by using public transit.
What you might not know is that this cut has a lot in common with other cuts happening in our province - cuts like those in health care with the closure of ERs and elimination of services such as physiotherapy or the cuts in the civil service. Like those cuts, the cut to Winnipeg transit is because of cuts form the provincial government.
The fact is the province has cut funding to the city of Winnipeg by $10 million. This is on top of ending the 50/50 transit funding agreement when it was unilaterally cut in the last provincial budget. The Mayor has also said some routes may be eliminated due to the shortage of cash.
We know this will impact many of our members. It will hurt those that work downtown where parking is scarce to begin with. And, it will also impact MGEU members who can’t afford their own vehicle and rely on public transit as their primary mode of transportation.
The Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) is opposing these cuts and says that Winnipeg Transit is “already not meeting the demands of the public and further reductions are ludicrous.” The MGEU will support our fellow ATU sisters and brothers and stand up to cuts against public transit.
It’s time the Manitoba government starts
listening to working families because cuts are only taking away public
services. This is in stark contrast to a
government that not too long ago said they would protect and improve public
services.
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