NDP dismisses Greens’ call for free transit as gas prices climb
B.C.’s environment minister has slammed the door on the B.C. Green pitch to make public transit free for four months to give drivers relief from soaring gas prices and reduce vehicle emissions.
But would such a plan actually get people to ditch their car in favour of a bus or SkyTrain?
Evidence from cities across the world has shown that free transit might not be enough to pull drivers out of their cars, especially if public transit options are limited, as they are outside of B.C.’s urban centres.
As gas prices climbed to a record 233.9 cents a litre in Metro Vancouver, both opposition parties are imploring the NDP government to do something to lessen the pain.
Last week, the Liberals said the province should follow Alberta’s lead and temporarily waive the 8.5-cent-a-litre provincial gas tax.
The government has repeatedly ruled out a gas tax holiday, and on Tuesday, Environment Minister George Heyman rejected the idea of free transit.
He said the province and federal government have spent $820 million in the past two years to keep fares low and prevent the transit authorities from cutting routes because of low ridership during the pandemic.
Green Leader Sonia Furstenau said she’s disappointed the government has already dismissed the idea. Free ridership must also come with spending on transit infrastructure across the province, Furstenau said.
TransLink, which serves Metro Vancouver, said such a plan would be expensive and ineffective in reducing car traffic. It would mean $160 million in lost revenue over four months, said TransLink spokeswoman Tina Lovgreen. “The cost of transit is not the primary reason why people choose transit over driving,” Lovgreen said. “The main drivers are convenience, frequency of service and connections to where they are commuting to.”
In 2013, the Institute of Transport Economics in Norway did an analysis of free transit schemes in cities across Europe. It found that while free transit does boost ridership, it mainly draws people who were walking or cycling.
“The effects on car traffic levels are marginal and typically they are offset … after a few years’ traffic growth,” the report found.
TransLink has not had a surge in ridership due to high gas prices. The transit service’s ridership in recent weeks is about 70 per cent of pre-pandemic levels.
The B.C. branch of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives has called for TransLink in Metro Vancouver to make transit free to everyone under 18 and tie transit passes to income.
When Furstenau asked Premier John Horgan in question period Monday if the government would make transit free, he said the government continues to look for ways to expand B.C.’s public transit system to meet the province’s greenhouse gas emissions targets.