Back to SearchWHITBY, ON – Regional Chair John Henry, several Regional Councillors and Durham MPPs were at Regional Headquarters on Friday, Jan. 18 to celebrate the recently announced provincial gas tax funding for Durham Region Transit (DRT). For 2019, DRT will be receiving $8,866,900, nearly $200,000 more than for 2018, and plans to increase mobility options with more frequent, flexible and seamless service in all areas of the Region.
“We are delighted to receive increased provincial funding for 2019,” says Regional Chair John Henry. “As we look to improve and enhance our services, our priority is to ensure that transit continues to be a safe, accessible and reliable option for our residents.”
The provincial funding comes on the tail of a successful year in which DRT met or exceeded its key performance measures toward success and greater accountability:
- Ridership is up: 4.6% year-to-year
- Area coverage is up: more homes, schools and work locations are within walking distance of a bus stop
- Customer Satisfaction is up: 6% year-to-year
- Safety is up: in 2018 we celebrated our lowest rate of preventable accidents in five years
“Going forward, for 2019 we are focused, with predictable funding support, on continuing to measure and be accountable for key service elements, such as on-time performance,” says Vincent Patterson, General Manager of DRT.
On Tuesday, Jan. 22 Marco Mendicino, the Parliamentary Secretary to Federal Minister of Infrastructure and Communities François-Philippe Champagne, and Oshawa MP Colin Carrie visited DRT to take a first-hand look at how transit infrastructure funding has helped Durham. The first stop was DRT’s Raleigh Division where they viewed new buses and facility improvements.
Shaun Collier, Mayor of Ajax and Vice-Chair of the Transit Executive Committee, was on hand to greet Mr. Mendicino in Ajax, where they viewed the recently opened bus-only lanes on Kingston Road. “The bus-only lanes are the backbone of DRT’s successful PULSE 900 Highway 2 service: they provide priority to transit to increase reliability, resulting in better service for DRT customers,” adds Patterson.
“We are grateful for the support from the two levels of government in their commitment to public transit for the Durham community, and helping people get where they need to go, safely and reliably” says Mayor Collier.
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Media inquiries:
DURHAM REGION TRANSIT COMMISSION
Shelley Pollock - Communications and Marketing
905-668-7711 ext. 3701 or shelley.pollock@durham.ca
If this information is required in an accessible format, please call 1-866-247-0055.
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