Low-income residents to see transit discounts

City, province team up on 2017 pilot project

The province and the city are pumping $12.4 million into providing low-income Edmontonians with monthly transit passes at bargain prices starting in 2017.

The pilot project will see monthly transit passes slashed by 60 per cent, making an adult pass about $37 instead of the usual $91.50.

The project is expected to help roughly 20,000 people per month over two years, according to city estimates.

People who hit the Low-Income Cut-Off, known as LICO, based on the total income per household and the number of residents, are eligible for a discounted pass every month. The city will release more details about the application process and distribution locations this fall.

“For commuters who are earning a good wage and living above the low-income cut-off, they can afford the pass that’s charged, we don’t hear a lot of push back about that, but we know that the ($91.50) cost for a bus pass for people who are working poor is a huge, huge percentage of their income,” said Mayor Don Iveson at a news conference Thursday to announce the plan. He said a targeted subsidy for low-income people has greater social returns than a blanket discount for everyone.

The total cost of the program is being split down the middle by the province and the city.

Human Services Minister Irfan Sabir said the Alberta government will be investing $213,000 this year to get the program off the ground. That will rise to $4 million in 2018.

Discounted transit passes will make it easier for families to access resources and services, including jobs, education, health care, library and community centres, reducing and preventing poverty, Sabir said.

More details will be announced Friday morning about low-income transit passes in Calgary, where an adult monthly pass costs $99.

The program will continue until 2018 and then will be evaluated to see if any improvements or changes need to be made, Sabir said.