Two city councillors are not on board with transit fare hikes that include a 50 per cent jump for seniors using handyDART.
A five-ticket pass is going from $10 to $15 for seniors, while the same pass is going up from $11.25 to $15 for adults, a 33 per cent increase.
鈥淲hen we look at increases in handyDART, you know our most vulnerable citizens鈥omething doesn't sound great,鈥� Coun. Gord Lovegrove said during council鈥檚 July 21 meeting. 鈥淚 can't support that. I don't think that's balanced.鈥�
Noting that it鈥檚 been 10 years since transit fees were last increased, Coun. Rick Webber felt the overall fee hikes were reasonable.
鈥淗owever, at the regional district meeting (July 17), I did notice that as much as these increases are fairly reasonable, considering the time, seniors are paying a larger increase percentage-wise than anybody else on the change list.鈥�
handyDART is a door-to-door, shared transit service designed for individuals with disabilities who cannot use regular public transit.
Fee increase range from 14 to 51 per cent, depending on the product, across the 麻豆精选 Regional Transit System (KRTS).
Courtesy City of 麻豆精选
The city鈥檚 transit and programs manager, Mike Kittmer, explained to council that the handyDART system is heavily utilized.
鈥淪o it is certainly more costly to operate than conventional transit,鈥� he added. 鈥淭he province provides additional financial support above what they do for conventional, but generally speaking, the cost recovery is significantly lower than that of conventional transit.鈥�
Cost recovery for the entire KRTS is expected to remain at 31 per cent, with future targets set at 35 per cent.
Council heard that transit fares haven鈥檛 increased since 2015, and that a planned 2020 review was cancelled due to COVID-19. Transit ridership has rebounded post-pandemic, reaching a record 6.45 million rides in 2024.
Transit costs have risen due to inflation and service expansion (15,500 more hours since 2019).
The Regional District Central Okanagan Board, Peachland and Lake Country have already approved the fare hikes. West 麻豆精选 will tackle the issue at its July 22 meeting.
麻豆精选 council voted in favour of the fare increases, with Lovegrove and Webber opposed.
New fares and programs are expected to take effect Oct. 1.
