[van-announce] Bus Riders Speak Out Against Proposed Fare Increase

[Yang Chang]

Bus Riders Speak Out Against Proposed Fare Increase

On Friday, November 19, 2004, bus riders are organizing to make their 
voices heard at the monthly TransLink board meeting, to be held at 9am 
in Surrey City Hall. Bus riders will make delegations to the TransLink 
board to voice their opposition to the proposed unjust fare hike, and to 
appeal to TransLink board members to vote down the motion at the next 
meeting in December.

"Bus riders already face attacks in other areas of our lives that 
include cuts to social services, rising rent prices, poorer and poorer 
health care service and lower wages," notes Kirat Kaur, an organizer 
with the Bus Riders Union. "Now we are being faced with the prospect of 
having our bus fares increased for the third time in five years. When 
transit-dependent bus riders are forced to make difficult decisions 
between being able to get to where we need to go and paying for food, 
rent and other necessities, this is a direct attack on our human right 
to mobility."

Transit-dependent people rely on the bus because we cannot afford a car, 
our family shares a car, or because of age or disability. We are 
majority women and disproportionately people of colour. TransLink's move 
to increase our bus fares means that we will be even more constrained in 
our ability to access work, school, social services and meaningful 
participation in our communities. Meanwhile, we are still left with an 
inadequate transit system, with long waits, overcrowded buses that are 
often not wheelchair- and stroller-accessible and an aging bus fleet in 
sore need of replacement.

While TransLink continues to insist that a fare increase is necessary to 
ensure better transit service, bus riders know that there really is no 
funding crunch at TransLink. It is a matter of misplaced priorities. 
Instead of pouring $1.35 billion into an unnecessary 
Richmond-Airport-Vancouver Skytrain mega-project based on an arbitrary 
Olympics timeline, TransLink should be using that money to keep fares 
affordable and improve the bus system. As a public service, transit 
should function to serve the needs of the transit-dependent, and not to 
serve the interests of big business and corporations such as Bombardier.

The Bus Riders Union, with over 550 members and thousands of supporters, 
is a grassroots organization fighting for more buses and lower fares. At 
Friday's TransLink board meeting, bus riders and representatives from 
community groups will be making delegations to TransLink. The meeting 
will be held at 9am at Surrey City Hall (14245 56th Ave). The Bus Riders 
Union encourages all who are concerned about the possible fare increase 
to speak out against it. For more information about making a delegation 
or attending the meeting, you can contact the Bus Riders Union at (604) 
215-2775. We may be able to provide limited carpooling.