Seniors to ride buses free on Mondays

City councillors have approved a six-month pilot project that will give seniors free rides on Sudbury Transit all day every Monday.

At the same meeting Tuesday, councillors also changed the definition of a senior from someone 55 and older to 65 and older, a move expected to save the city $175,000 next year. Lost revenue from the pilot project is estimated at $51,629.

The decision came after a lengthy debate that ranged from concerns about giving a relatively well-off demographic a break they don't need, to arguments that seniors should get free rides all week for a year.

Ward 9 Coun. Deb McIntosh said many seniors in Sudbury are in a higher income bracket and aren't in need of economic help. While lower-income seniors no doubt will benefit, she argued that such ridership initiatives should be targeted to residents who need assistance the most.

“Providing free rides to people who don't necessarily need the help, I think is wrong,” McIntosh said.

The idea originated with Mayor Brian Bigger, who campaigned on a promise to give seniors free bus rides during off-peak hours. However, transit director Roger Sauvé said that residents in the Valley and other areas a fair distance from downtown would only be able to benefit one way, since by the time they were ready to return, it would no longer be off-peak hours.

Ward 5 Coun. Bob Kirwan wanted to expand the project even more to offer seniors free rides all day, all week, for a year.

“We'd be removing the barrier for seniors to get into the habit of riding the bus without any restrictions,” Kirwan said. “Our ridership has flatlined since 2006. Despite all of the upgrades to our transit ... we have the same number of people riding the bus.

“I'm trying to get bums in seats.”

However, city finance chief Lorella Hayes said that option would likely mean as much as $1 million in lost revenue in a year.
Even if they tried it for six months, Kirwan argued it would be worth the lost revenue.

“Let's give them free rides and see if we can increase ridership,” he said. “Will we lose money? Possibly. But we're here to help people who need it most (and) at least we'll get more people on the buses.”

But Ward 8 Coun. Al Sizer said after the gruelling process to save $6 million over the last few months, councillors shouldn't dig themselves another financial hole so quickly.

In the end, the finance and administration committee agreed and approved the six-month pilot project offering free rides to seniors all day on Mondays.