TTC fares up 10 cents as of April 1

Increased fares 'always a last resort' says spokesperson

TTC express bus in Sheppard
Most TTC fares increased 10 cents April 1. Vatche Ayvazian/Toronto Observer

Toronto Transit Commission fares increased by 10 cents for most riders on April 1, the eighth fare hike in the last 10 years.

Here’s the breakdown of the increase:

  • Cash: adult fare stays at $3.25. Senior and student fares increase to $2.20, from $2.10.
  • Tokens and tickets: adult tokens rise to $3.10 from $3.00. Senior and student tickets will be $2.25, up from $2.05.
  • Presto fares: an adult trip on the Presto card will jump to $3.10 from $3.00.
  • Monthly passes: a regular monthly pass will be $151.15, up from $146.25. Senior and student passes will increase to $122.45, up from $116.75.
  • Day pass: Day passes increase to $13 from $12.50.

In January, the TTC board approved the fare hike as part of its 2019 operating budget. The 10-cent hike will bring in an extra $22-million to cover transit needs including new vehicles, transit upgrades, electrical and signal upgrades, a spokesperson said at the time.

The last fare increase was in 2017 where there was a 10-cent hike.

“Increasing fares is always a last resort, but in order to protect certain services, we need to find a balance between what’s affordable to our customers and operating a budget that protects service improvements,” said TTC spokesperson Stuart Green.

University student Daron Derderian thinks the recent fare hike “is necessary in order to meet the demands” (Vatche Ayvazian)

Daron Derderian, 22, a Ryerson University student who uses public transit every day, said he supports the increase.

“Unfortunately the TTC needs the income in order to meet the demands of a  growing city. Sometimes a fare hike is necessary to achieve this,” he said.

Green said another challenge for the TTC is fare evasion.

“It’s definitely a problem, it was one of many reasons we increased fares, but again we’re looking into adding more security in stations that are experiencing fare evasion. In case people don’t know, we’ve lost almost $61-million due to fare evasion.”

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Posted: Apr 2 2019 5:45 pm
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