TTC seeks to raise fares by 10 cents in 2020 budget proposal
Posted December 13, 2019 4:55 pm.
Last Updated December 14, 2019 10:11 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
The Toronto Transit Commission wants to increase fares by 10 cents in it’s proposed 2020 operating budget for the transit service.
In a report released on Friday, the proposed fare-increase would be effective on March 1, 2020.
Adult Presto card fares would increase to $3.20. Senior and youth Presto fares are facing the same increase, while a monthly adult Presto pass would spike by five dollars.
Adult cash fares would be exempted from the increase.
The commission is hoping to raise about $31.4 million from the increase.
About 59 per cent of the commission’s funding comes from passenger fares, 37 per cent comes from the city, with the remaining 4 per cent from ancillary revenue sources and reserve draws, the report said.
“Our proposed operating budget for next year is $2.14 billion, an increase of nearly $85 million, or 4.1 per cent over 2019,” TTC CEO Rick Leary said in a statement Friday.
Leary said he knows fare increases are “never popular” but are necessary “to support the service we have” and to pay for “the enhancements to support city-building goals.”
The proposed fare changes follow a similar 10 cent increase in 2019.
The operating budget also includes new recommendations that stemmed from a report from the Ombudsman regarding inclusivity and a fare evasion report from the Auditor General.
It includes the addition of 50 revenue protection staff, an implementation of an anti-racism strategy and a new complaints process.
The budget says the revenue protection initiative is expected to generate $7 million.
