Halifax council to consider permanent low income bus pass program

Halifax is considering doubling the low income transit pass program and making it a permanent fixture in the city.

READ MORE: Application deadline for low income Halifax Transit passes extended indefinitely

At Tuesday’s meeting, members of council will debate prolonging the pilot project and then replacing it with a yearly low income bus pass program.

The pilot, started last summer, provides low income residents with half-price monthly Halifax Transit passes. It was made available to the first 500 applicants when it launched, but staff are recommending doubling that number to 1,000 if council agrees to make it an annual program.

A staff report says the change would cost the city approximately $160,000 in lost revenue. The report says low income residents are defined as people with a combined family income of $33,000 in the previous year.

District 6 Councillor Tony Mancini told Global News in an interview that he expects council will approve the proposal

“We have a moral obligation to step up,” Mancini said. “Our responsibility is to take care of our residents and that this is part of it.”

READ MORE: Halifax extends application process for low income transit pass program

If the plan goes ahead, a yearly program would start in July. The report recommends that council also extend the pilot project until the end of June so that there is no gap in access to the low income transit pass program. If council rejects the plan then the pilot project could end at the end of February.