The federal government has eliminated a decade-old tax cut that allows commuters to deduct a healthy percentage of the cost of their monthly transit passes.
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“I’m doing my best to get to work on time and now the government is cutting that off,” said Lorraine Brunette, a commuter from the south shore.
“What else are they going to cut off?”
Commuters are currently allowed to deduct roughly 15 per cent from their federal taxes.
For an urban commuter using the Metro or bus service, it’s a percentage of a little less than $1,000 annually.
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For someone using commuter trains, the annual fare can be more than $3,000.
The change in the federal budget took transit officials in Montreal by surprise.
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“This was actually concrete money in people’s pockets,” said city councillor Marvin Rotrand, though he added that he didn’t think it would hurt ridership.
The tax credit is scheduled to end in June.
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