Back to SearchWHITBY, ON – Last week Sam Oosterhoff, the Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Education, announced the province is moving forward with a review of the student transportation funding formula to achieve a more efficient and accountable student transportation system and improve the transportation experience for students across the province.
First announced in March 2019, the review responds to calls from student transportation partners to improve the funding formula, which could be more responsive to the changing needs and costs encountered by school boards.
“Durham Region Transit is already engaging with Durham Student Transportation Service (DSTS) and the school boards, and we are more than willing to work together towards equitable solutions that remove redundancy in our transportation systems for the benefit of our residents and taxpayers.” says Shaun Collier, Mayor of Ajax and Chair of the Transit Executive Committee.
Bill Holmes, General Manager of DRT adds that “we have worked successfully with our local boards to promote new fare incentives to encourage youth and students to use public transit in Durham, and we look forward to any opportunity that will enhance access to public transit within our communities.”
DRT’s commitment to increasing youth ridership was evident throughout 2019, including successful fare incentive campaigns:
- The Kids ride free campaign launched in May 2019 provided 54,448 free trips (as of December 2019) for children aged 12 and under, the next generation of transit users.
- Launched in September 2019, the Y10 youth loyalty fare incentive generated a 45 per cent increase in youth pass sales the first month alone, and as of December 2019, has provided 1,985 youth with easier and more affordable access to transit.
- In its second year, the 2019 youth summer 2-for-1 monthly pass promotion enabled 670 youth to benefit from unlimited free travel in August when a July pass was purchased.
Province of Ontario newsroom release from Jan. 27, 2020:
https://news.ontario.ca/edu/en/2020/01/ontario-reviews-student-transportation-to-improve-school-bus-service-for-students-and-families.html
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Media inquiries:
DURHAM REGION TRANSIT COMMISSION
Shelley Pollock – Marketing and Communications
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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