This letter to the editor was published in the Toronto Star on Monday June 10. Tell us what you think of this issue in the comments box. You can also express your opinion to your local city councillor.
At a time when everybody is clamouring for more funding to improve our public transit system, it makes no sense to siphon surplus money away from the TTC’s overstretched operating budget.
If that $41-million surplus was redirected back into the TTC, we could reverse the 5-cent per token fare hike that was imposed on riders this year. That 5-cent fare increase costs commuters $26 a year.
Maybe that doesn’t sound like that much to some, but it starts to really burn a hole in that wallet when you consider the additional impact of a 10-cent fare hike in 2012, the 25-cent hike in 2010, and the planned 10-cent fare hike in 2014.
Combine them and commuters are paying an additional $260 a year more for transit. That's a lot more than the hated $60 vehicle registration fee that was killed in 2010.
Alternatively, that $41-million surplus could be redirected to putting more buses and street cars in operation so we spend less time waiting for transit.
Ultimately, if we want to secure the affordable, world-class public transit system we deserve, the TTC’s operating budget should be infused with far more than $41 million a year, and that funding should come from all levels of government. But in the meantime, the city should not take money away from the TTC and, by extension, TTC riders.
Jessica Bell, steering committee member, TTCriders, Toronto
Ben Spurr and Ben Cohen of the Toronto Star report on the 2025 City Budget. TTC riders are considered winners due to the investments being made in transit!
Read analysis from TTCriders about what's being proposed in the TTC budget in 2025 and how to get involved! Members of the public can speak directly to City Councillors during budget hearings on January 21 and 22 at locations across Toronto.
TTCriders reaction to the release of the 2025 TTC budget.