New Halifax Transit fare structure would be unfair to seniors
In its proposal to change fare structures, Halifax Transit wanted to eliminate the senior category altogether, in favour of one adult category for everyone age 18 and over.
Seniors can be forgiven if they feel like Halifax Transit is suddenly looking at them as a potential cash cow.
On Thursday, the city’s transportation committee wisely sidestepped Halifax Transit’s plan to ditch seniors’ discounted monthly passes and hit them with big cash fare increases.
But that reprieve may only be temporary.
In its proposal to change fare structures, Halifax Transit wanted to eliminate the senior category altogether, in favour of one adult category for everyone age 18 and over. Under that scenario, as of Sept. 30, cash fares for seniors would have risen from the current $1.75 to $2.75. Senior monthly passes (now $58) would disappear, replaced by $82.50 adult monthly passes.
Councilors on the committee instead voted to keep the senior category for now while studying the impact of phasing in such changes and what percentage of seniors could afford them.
All cash fares, including those for seniors, are to reasonably rise by 25 cents at the end of September. That’ll be the first increase in six years.
All of this still has to be approved by council in August.
So, what was Halifax Transit thinking? ….