TTC

Most suburban students are not commuters but if you live in Toronto, then this blog’s for you. Effective January 3, 2010, the fare to take the TTC is going up and so is the Metro Pass – by $17; Happy New Year! College and University students are being given a break but what about the parents who may be helping their college and/or university students pay tuition? This is criminal.
In no other city in North America are commuters expected to pay 70 per cent of the operating budget for public transit. The TTC knows that it has most commuters by the you-know-what. For many, there is no other way for them to maneuver themselves through the city. Yet, the TTC has yet to be classified an Essential Service. What’s even worse is that the TTC isn’t promising more reliable service for the additional increase. Only with government-funded programs are agencies permitted (or able) to demand more and provide less.
With the economy in the tank why isn’t the TTC taking the same measures as the private sector when it comes to filling the gap in budget shortfalls? Ie: layoffs. Instead, raises continue to be given out why the Toronto Transit Commission continues to cry poor. In the private sector when a company doesn’t have the money to pay for things they don’t gauge their customers – lest they lose them to the competition. If the TTC has a monopoly then it’s time for them to be declared an Essential Service. Otherwise, it’s time for them to find more creative ways to find money besides yearly fare increases. TTC = Take The Car. Do you know what I mean? Post your comments below, for or against fare increases.