[bru-info] Bus Riders Union will continue to protest fare hikes that hurt the poor (VanSun Jun 22)

[bru-info at lists.resist.ca]

Bus Riders Union will continue to protest fare hikes that hurt the poorJan
Efting, Special to The ProvincePublished: Friday, June 22, 2007

Poor people had better tighten their belts, because things aren't getting
better for low-income communities anytime soon.

Take bus fares -- which TransLink is proposing to increase by 11 per cent in
January of next year.

At the same time, we're facing a $6 minimum wage, stagnating welfare rates
and the highest housing prices in North America.

Something has got to give.

On Tuesday at 8:00 a.m, organizers from the Bus Riders Union delayed traffic
on Granville Street for 10 minutes to protest the proposed fare increase and
to call for expanded bus service.

It is disappointing that several major news media misrepresented our action,
claiming protesters surrounded a car, participated in a shoving match and
were led off the road by police.

Nothing like that happened. The protest was dignified, organized and brief.

Incidentally, 10 minutes is about the same amount of time that bus riders
are delayed every time a bus is too full to pick them up -- and leaves them
waiting by the side of the road to wait for the next bus. This happened
19,000 times in 2006, more than any previous year.

There are about 1000 buses running during rush hour in the GVRD. That's 500
buses short of what TransLink promised in 2000.

There's been four fare increases since then, but overall service has
actually gone down.

TransLink says it's going to use the extra $18 million in revenue from the
latest fare increase to buy more buses.

But bus riders have paid enough. A dollar only stretches so far.

It's really about priorities.

TransLink has been spending billions on for-profit rail projects like the
Canada Line and the proposed Evergreen Line. If that money were invested in
the bus system, we could double the bus fleet and actually lower bus fares.

Frequency, convenience and affordability are the most important factors to
draw people out of their cars.

Meanwhile, air quality is getting steadily worse, as poor people are often
forced to buy a car because of the inadequate, expensive bus service. This
often means working overtime or taking on a second job to pay for car
maintenance.

Bus riders without access to a car are low-wage workers, welfare recipients,
high- school students, seniors, immigrants and refugees.

They're among the most marginalized in the GVRD. They're the ones who will
be hardest hit by the proposed fare increase. But the health of our entire
region is at stake.

It's time for TransLink to make a commitment to public health and social
justice by investing in affordable bus fares and expanding services.

There isn't much point in increasing bus service if the low-income people
who depend on the buses can't afford to ride them.

Civil disobedience is a proud tradition used by marginalized people to make
their voices heard.

Poor people may be tightening their belts, but they won't be suffering
quietly.

Jan Efting, of the Bus Riders Union, can be reached at
busridersunion at gmail.com


-- 
Bus Riders Union
672 East Broadway St.
Vancouver BC
V5T 1X6
http://bru.vcn.bc.ca/
604-215-2775
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