Public transit users will officially pay a premium to be stuffed into TTC vehicles like sardines
The TTC has approved a fare hike for 2012, meaning commuters will have to shell out an extra dime for the privilege of being shoehorned into already overcrowded streetcars, subways and buses. Of course, reasonable observers—like transit advocate Steve Munro—offer that fare hikes are necessary in order to solidify the TTC’s financial base, and the news of the price increase follows the announcement that the TTC will save service on some of the city’s busiest bus routes. So really, the transit situation isn’t entirely dire. Just don’t think about the Transit City funeral fund, or that how a Metropass will now cost an extra five dollars a month, which works out to roughly an annual increase of one vehicle registration tax. Read the entire story [Toronto Star] »
TTC – worst public transit I’ve experienced on 3 continents and about a dozen cities. Over priced, under serviced, and old dirty ugly subway stations.
In short an embarrassment to Toronto and also to Canada.
So what do you propose to do about it? Its grossly underfunded, we know this. Rather than just complaining about how dirty and overpriced it is, why not suggest what can be done to improve it.
I promise you that all of those superior services in other continents are HEAVILY subsidized by government and probably operate at a major loss – especially in Asia and Europe. Asia especially subsidizes transit to a huge extent that you’ll never see here, and we’re seeing the results of that with the deterioration of the TTC, which was once considered one of the best and most efficient transit systems in North America.
Don’t forget – the TTC is more reliant on fare revenue than just about any major system and has had its funding cut from senior levels of government. Could it be better managed? Probably, but funding is the real issue here. And other cities in Canada? Don’t make me laugh – the TTC probably has higher ridership than every other “big” (and I use that term loosely) city in Canada, except Montreal, COMBINED. And in Montreal’s case, our ridership is still considerably higher than theirs. SO in other words, the TTC is regularly expected to do more with less than any other big city transit system, probably in the world.
And you complain the TTC is dirty? Please – you’ve obviously never spent much time riding transit in New York, Chicago or even Boston or Philly because if you had, you couldn’t possibly suggest the TTC is any worse in that regard. But then you’re probably one of those folks who lives in Toronto but spends all of his time complaining that its not New York or Hong Kong.
Until governement is willing to take transit seriously in this country, it will never improve. Until goverment realizes that the best way to ease traffic congestion in big cities is to have effective transit, things will never improve.
Public Transit is a nice-to-have service that really should be curtailed. It is a good example of how governments overreach by providing nanny services like shuttling people from one place to another. These people should get jobs and buy cars. Problem solved, without a bunch of taxes and government regulations. Then we can all drive vroom vroom down the road, together.