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Susan Ruttan, Edmonton Journal
9 f1 F- P! \8 i( B1 Z9 ]1 v L8 N4 pPublished: Friday, March 30, 2007
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The cost of a monthly transit pass could jump by $15 if city council endorses a proposed new transit fare policy. P- m" C9 I t. ?0 o7 C
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That policy would use the cost of an adult transit ticket, currently $2.50, to set all other fares charged by Edmonton Transit.6 j+ `) ]# q4 {" D) N$ h% A$ Z& z6 [
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It would end the random system of fare increases being approved each year by city council. Council in December voted to raise the adult ticket by 25 cents, but left the $59 monthly adult pass untouched.( }6 d2 r6 w( r! j, g2 O
A- C; @7 {5 V$ DIn the new formula, any increase in the adult cash fare would trigger increases in all other fares.
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It’s proposed that the adult monthly pass would cost 55 per cent of the cost of a cash fare, assuming an average transit rider takes 54 trips a month. That works out to $74, about the same price as a monthly pass in St. Albert, Strathcona County and Calgary.
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“Currently our cash fares and month passes are priced below comparable organizations,” said Patricia Waisman, director of business development for Edmonton Transit.; `. U) X! j+ B, _% D
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The new system of all fares being based on the basic fare would help to correct that, she said.
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Waisman said the “multiplier” in the formula, the average 54 trips a month, varies from city to city. In Toronto the multiplier would be a bigger number, in Lethbridge a smaller number.# w* P8 W% f% x
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The proposed change acts on a recommendation of the city auditor David Wiun.; Y! m5 w5 v# ]+ \; g
9 ^, M& I+ q( g! o3 u& IIn a recent report, he said Edmonton’s transit passes and cash fares are 11 to 14 per cent below that of comparable cities. The result is that Edmonton taxpayers must pay a greater share of transit’s budget than in those other cities, he said. |
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