Despite steep fare increases last year that will be duplicated again this year, HSR still hasn’t found enough funds to purchase buses to overcome its system deficiencies. That budget request is on top of a steep jump in DARTS cost and a “to be determined” price tag for other HSR operating costs this year – all “referred” items that could push up expected tax increases.
The bus purchases were supposed to have taken place last year and council hoped that the provincial government would pick up the tab as part of a last minute $302 million request added to the city’s LRT request. Queen’s Park approved over $1 billion for the LRT and a new GO Station at Centennial Parkway, but not surprisingly didn’t agree to also foot the bill for buses or for a bus storage barn that are part of council’s ten-year transit strategy.
The immediate effect is eleven missing buses that were supposed to be added to the HSR fleet in 2015 – the first year of the 10-year strategy. Staff now propose to borrow the $6.9 million cost and are seeking council approval for an annual debt servicing cost of $800,000.
“The 11 buses are to be allocated to address transit service deficiencies related to growth in HSR ridership and respond to on-going population growth in the urban transit area,” states the staff request. “The resulting service level improvements are aimed at providing customers with more consistently reliable journeys and ensuring that major origins/destinations, including key inter-regional connections points, will be linked with attractive local transit service.”
Staff also are seeking an extra $2.2 million a year to provide an additional 75,000 DARTS trips. That’s a change agreed to in 2010 to meet provincial legislation that guarantees equivalent service to disabled riders and thus it is described in the budget documents as “legislated”.
The third transit item in the “referred” category of the 2016 operating budget is for the “second year of a two-year phasing of service level improvements to address current system deficiencies” and doesn’t yet have a cost estimate. It notes improvements took place last year between downtown and McMaster as well as on the Cannon, Upper Kenilworth, Sanatorium and Waterdown routes but argues “additional improvements are planned for routes and areas that exhibit deficiencies.”
The latter two items are for operating expenses but vehicle purchases would normally be part of the capital budget that was finalized last week. The HSR is treated differently because its spending is “area rated” along the previous boundaries of the municipalities that amalgamated to form Hamilton 15 years ago.
The 2016 capital budget includes $3 million earmarked for bus purchases – out of the $31 million granted to the city each year from federal gas taxes. The remainder goes to road construction and maintenance – an unusual use of the funds by communities with transit systems.
The federal grants were initiated by former Prime Minister Paul Martin to help municipalities “invest in environmentally sustainable municipal infrastructure,” and especially in measures which would reduce the greenhouse gas emissions that are driving climate change. Hamilton is nearly alone among Ontario cities in not using nearly all these funds for transit.
That means the vast majority of the $800,000 annual debt carrying costs – if approved for the 11 buses – will be borne by residents of the former city. That’s not just because they outnumber their suburban counterparts, but primarily because transit tax rates are three times higher in the old city than in the former suburbs.
The budget documents released so far don’t include HSR ridership figures for last year. Fares were raised 8 to 12 percent for the last third of the year and will go up by a similar amount this coming September. With no change in riders, that would have been expected to raise transit revenues by more than the 3 percent reported for 2015. The budget anticipates the 2016 revenues will also rise by just 3 percent.
Residents will be allowed to speak to council about the 2016 budget on February 9 starting at 3 pm.