Collingwood's 2025 budget talks will include possibly rolling out extended hours for Collingwood Transit.
During council’s regular meeting on Nov. 4, Coun. Chris Potts put forward a motion to direct staff to prepare costing estimates for increasing the hours for the town’s transit.
Currently, town transit runs 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. seven days a week. Staff will prepare a costing scenario that will see transit running 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. seven days a week, both for CollTrans and TransitPLUS services, but will be subject to change during budget talks.
“With next week being our first budget talks, I felt it was important to do this now,” said Potts. “Council is aware we’ve been dealing with some pressures with transit, specifically TransitPLUS.”
On Oct. 1, Ace Cabs scaled down its accessible taxi service to only be available Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., which is partially paid for through a contract with the Town of Collingwood. The move has put more pressure on the town’s accessible TransitPLUS option.
“This is something I think is imperative to at least get the hours increased for all of our transit. There will be a benefit to our workplaces and businesses. To get a taxi ride is a day’s pay,” said Potts. “Maybe we can reduce those pressures.”
Coun. Kathy Jeffery said she was in favour.
“Who around the table could not be concerned and supportive of modifying our current transit practices with the reality that’s out there?” said Coun. Christopher Baines.
Mayor Yvonne Hamlin was also supportive, but raised concern that the motion doesn’t also consider adjusting routes so more than half the town can be serviced by town transit.
“It’s one thing to increase the hours... but the other thing I thought we could get was the covering of all the municipality,” she said, asking if town staff could also prepare a scenario be included to extend transit routes, or at least give an update on when that could feasibly happen, to which staff agreed.
The town’s 2025 draft budget is expected to be released to the public this Friday, with a special council meeting planned for Nov. 13 for consideration of the first draft.
Now that the direction has been approved by a unanimous vote of council, the matter will next come before councillors as part of the 2025 budget deliberations. To reach out to council to let them know what you think, click here.
