The London Transit Commission is looking forward to its final year of a five-year service plan, but first, it’s hoping the city will shell out another $1.3 million.
The requested increase works out to a 4.3 per cent jump from last year’s budget to bring the requested 2019 budget to $32.8-million total. The LTC board is expected to formally approve the request at its meeting Wednesday afternoon before the request heads to city hall.
General Manager Kelly Paleczny told Global News Radio 980 CFPL the commission is looking to add a total of 24,000 more hours of service.
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“Obviously the 2019 plan isn’t finalized yet. That’s something that will go through a process. But we do know that extending the Sunday services is one of the key items that will be considered in the 2019 plan,” she explained to 980 CFPL’s Mike Stubbs on London Live.
Paleczny added that the five-year plan that will wrap up in 2019 was meant to address existing issues like overcrowding and frequency rather than push for growth, though they have experienced a roughly one to two per cent growth rate for 2018.
“The overcrowding, the schedule-adherence, those kinds of issues — that’s not intended to attract riders, that’s intended to put efforts towards maintaining our existing riders. So, making sure that the service that we’re putting out there is something that’s a viable option for them.”
With the conclusion of the five-year plan drawing closer, the LTC will also be holding public sessions on Sept. 11 at the London Public Library’s Central Branch.
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