Victoria city council thinks we should all be able to hop on the bus for free. It鈥檚 an intriguing idea to promote transit use, but it comes with some difficult questions.
The big one, of course, is how to pay for it. Victoria wants to put its new Sunday parking fees into free bus passes for Victorians under 19. But that is a long way from funding free transit for everyone in the region.
In 2017-18, it cost $131.2 million to run the Victoria Regional Transit System. Fares accounted for 27.8 per cent of that. The vast majority of the funding 鈥� 67.5 per cent 鈥� comes from provincial taxes, local property taxes and the fuel tax.
Regional governments can鈥檛 count on the province to chip in the difference, so that 27.8 per cent would have to be added to property taxes and/or the fuel tax. Many voters are likely to object to such a whopping increase, and could raise their objections at the ballot box.
Even if the funding question can be answered, bus fares are not the only factor keeping commuters in their cars. Convenience is a big consideration. The buses have to go where people want to go, at the times they want to travel.
Drawing more people on the bus would mean more buses and more routes. All that would cost money 鈥� more than just the millions in forgone fares. So taxes could rise even more.
Victoria will have to work out a lot of details if it hopes to convince other elected officials 鈥� and taxpayers.
