This morning, GRT announced that starting July 1st, the reduced fair for seniors, elementary and high school students will end.
The choice to end these discounts is apart of GRT’s movement away from age-based fare reductions to reductions based on income. Regional Council approved these changes as part of the rollout of the Affordable Transit Program (ATP) in order to offer more people living with low-income (including seniors, elementary and high school students) affordable transit.
The Affordable Transit Program (ATP) offers a 48% discount on the price of GRT fare products and is open to anyone in Waterloo Region living with low income.
You may be eligible for ATP if you are 18 or older, live in the region, not a full-time postsecondary student, and your household income is below the income limit. If approved, all members of your household can purchase the discounted fare products. This includes all children 17 or younger.
Once you are approved for ATP you can purchase monthly passes or stored value (both at 48% discount). It’s worth noting that If you purchase a regular monthly pass before your eligibility is confirmed, you will not be able to have your pass refunded. For information on applying for ATP, click here.
ATP comes as a replacement of the Transit for Reduced Income (T.R.I.P), which provided some people with reduced incomes a discount on the Adult Monthly Pass. Whereas, their transportation fee subsidy programs that support those in Ontario Works, and the Ontario Disability Support Program will remained unchanged.
For further reading on Grand River Transit, the GRT’s 2017-2021 business plan which outlines the prerogatives behind some of their initiatives can be found here.
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Honestly, the household size should be removed. The average salary in Kitchener-Waterloo is $59,000 per year before taxes. My friends and I are not even close to the average and the cost of living keeps going up, including bus fares, and are the breadwinners of our families. Even though we don’t have children, we are taking care of our ailing parents that have been widowed and paying for all their needs and medications. If I look at the chart, we fall under $34,020 after taxes a year but we are a household of two (my father and I) and therefore do not qualify. After paying rent, insurance, groceries and the full priced bus fare for both of us, there is nothing left over to put away in savings.