Regional ridership up 12 per cent
Sep 06, 2008 - 04:30 AM
By Reka Szekely
DURHAM -- As the price at the pumps soars, Durham residents are joining their fellow Canadians in migrating to public transit.
Pickering resident and student Amira Rezkalla said gas prices are affecting her decision to use the bus. She has a car, but opts to grab a Durham Region Transit (DRT) bus to the UOIT campus.
“I just won’t take my car if there’s a bus going straight to school,” she said.
Ms. Rezkalla is not alone in considering public transit. A recent survey from the Canadian Urban Transit Association and the Federation of Canadian Municipalities found 60 per cent of Canadians are rethinking their transportation choices in the wake of soaring gas prices. One in five survey respondents said they’ve switched or are thinking of switching to public transit.
Locally, DRT reports a 12.4-per-cent increase in ridership in July over the same period last year. Part of the growth can be attributed to more and more people taking local buses to the GO stations.
“To date we’ve seen an 18 per cent increase in GO commuter rides since January,” said Ted Galinis, general manager for DRT.
And not only are commuters opting for public transit, almost a quarter say they’re driving less.
Oshawa resident Cheryl Legault does a bit of both. She gets dropped off at the Ajax GO station and then takes the train to work.
“I used to drive in and back and it just got too nuts to commute,” she said. Ms. Legault also said she takes fewer trips to the Lindsay or Peterborough area to visit family since prices shot up.
Ajax resident Ankit Malhorta also has a car and opts for public transportation. He said taking the GO bus to work saves him a little bit of money. Although he’s opted for a smaller car, insurance, gas prices and maintenance all add up.
“I just take the bus because it’s a little more convenient. It picks me up and drops me at work,” he said.
He grabs a ride to the bus station with his brother, who works in Ajax.
“My whole family carpools, my parents take the GO train, I take the bus,” said Mr. Malhorta.
With rising prices at the pumps, DRT is planning on seizing the opportunity to get more people riding the bus through an ad campaign directed at commuters who fill up GO parking lots.
“The marketing we’re going to be doing (says) for the cost of a litre of gas, $1.30, we can get you to and from the GO train station,” said Mr. Galinis. Under the co-fare system, GO ticket holders pay $0.65 per ride to the station.
“If people haven’t turned to transit yet, now’s a good time to take a look, we’re the cheaper alternative and we’re the environmentally friendly alternative.”
Ajax resident Vicky Savas is already sold. She doesn’t drive and has no plans to start.
“Just with the price of gas, cars, insurance, the time on the road, I’d rather take the bus.”
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