GTHA transit unions call on Ford government to halt expansion of fare integration program

Riders take a subway train on the Toronto Transit Commission station in downtown Toronto, Saturday, April 1, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Cole Burston

Local transit unions in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area are calling on the Doug Ford government not to push forward with its plan to harmonize fares across the region, saying they have serious concerns about the move.

On Thursday, the president of the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) of Canada and the heads of ATU Locals representing TTC, GO Transit, Metrolinx, MiWay, Brampton Transit and Hamilton Street Railway workers sent a letter to Ontario Transportation Minister Prabmeet Sarkaria about the province’s “One Fare 2.0,” which would see transit agencies adopt a single unified fare structure.

ATU Canada President John Di Nino said the province needs to consult with transit workers and their unions before moving ahead with the fare changes.

“Transit workers are the ones who keep this region moving every single day, and ATU must have a seat at the table whenever decisions are being made that affect our workforce,” Di Nino said.

“If Ontario is serious about building a regional transit system that works, it starts with respecting the people who run it.”

“One Fare 2.0” is part of the wide-ranging Bill 98 or the Building Homes and Improving Transportation Infrastructure Act, which was introduced at Queen’s Park last week and is currently in second reading.

The “One Fare” system was introduced back in 2024 to allow people to transfer between different municipal transit agencies within the GTHA without having to pay twice. According to the province, the program has saved Ontarians over $230 million so far.

Officials have said there have been early discussions about what the new fare structure might look like, including the possibility of a zoned system in which riders might pay based on how far they travel, rather than a single flat fare.

ATU and its locals called Bill 98 an “unprecedented provincial takeover of municipal transit, with no enforceable protections for service levels, fare revenue, or worker rights.”

During last week’s announcement, the minister claimed that the legislation would allow the province “to work with municipal and regional transit agencies towards a more unified fare structure, including common fares discounts and free transfers across the network.”

Integration would introduce fare barriers within Toronto: unions

In the letter, the unions pointed out that at the TTC, 24 cross-boundary corridors covering 50 routes could be handed to outside operators, without service legal agreements or accountability to the Toronto City Council, which could lead to contracting out work performed by ATU members for over a century.

“(The TTC) operates on a single-fare, integrated network model that has served Toronto for over a century. The cross-boundary integration proposal threatens to dismantle that model by introducing fare barriers within the city, transferring control of routes to agencies and politicians outside Toronto, and creating a pathway for the eventual contracting out of public transit work,” the letter read.

The unions also claimed that transit agencies in Brampton, Hamilton and Mississauga are losing riders and revenue under One Fare, and Bill 98 would accelerate the trend.

“In every case, decisions affecting our members’ jobs and the public service they deliver are being made without consulting the workers who do the work. That is not integration. It is fragmentation by design, and it must stop,” the letter read.

Dakota Brasier, the director of media relations for the office of Minister Sarkaria, called the unions’ claims inaccurate and misguided, reiterating that the One Fare program is helping commuters save money.

“Our legislation introduced earlier this week further integrates transit fares, saving money for families who are travelling into Toronto from the GTHA. It does not impact service nor force unnecessary transfers as the ATU inaccurately claims,” Brasier said.

She added that the TTC will continue to be municipally owned and operated, as is the case with other local transit agencies.

Other demands

In addition to halting One Fare 2.0, the unions are also demanding enforceable service level agreements, guaranteeing fare revenue transparency and protection, a commitment that the expanded fare integration program would not result in contracting out of work to private operators, and providing dedicated and stable operating funding for all GTHA transit systems.

The unions are also asking that the province restore the TTC-GO co-fare, which was cancelled in 2019. The program provided riders with a $1.50 discount when transferring between GO and TTC. The unions argue that the co-fare was a “proven and effective regional fare integration tool.”

“If the province were serious about making transit work across the region, restoring the TTC-GO co-fare would be the clear and immediate first step.”

The unions are also calling on the province to fully fund the operational costs of the Hazel McCallion LRT to ensure that the City of Mississauga does not strip essential resources away from MiWay.

“Any attempts at regional integration must be supported with sustained provincial funding in order to protect all municipalities. The installation of the Hazel McCallion line must not come at the cost of the MiWays delivery of reliable service,” the letter read.

With files from Joshua Freeman