Fulton students Jade Ha and Haylee Andal make transit presentation to Vernon council May 13 (Liam Verster / Vernon Matters photo)

By Liam Verster

Update

Vernon Council endorses free transit for teens, not providing fare-free rides locally

Jun 10, 2024 | 6:00 AM

UPDATE: 4:30 p.m. Monday, June 10

The City of Vernon is supporting a bid by local teens to have a provincial free transit program expanded.

B.C.’s Get on Board! program currently allows children aged 6 to 12 to ride public transit free of charge, but people and groups across the province have been asking for it to be expanded to youth aged 13 to 18, including two local teenagers who presented to Vernon city council in May.

At the request of the teens, Vernon council, at its meeting June 10, voted unanimously in favour of writing a letter supporting the request to the province, as well as to bring forward a motion for discussion at the Union of B.C. Municipalities convention.

The staff report to council did not provide local figures on how many teens use the transit system, so council did not discuss providing fare-free public transit locally, as some other B.C. communities have already implemented, due to a lack of sufficient ridership data.

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“The reason why we don’t have an estimated cost is historically we had no way of tracking, we had no computerized tracking for when you get on the bus, and that’s now emerged. We have that now, but we didn’t have it previously so we wouldn’t have even known how many 13 to 18 year olds were actually riding the bus,” Mayor Victor Cumming told Vernon Matters following the council meeting Monday.

“Other municipalities have decided to financially absorb that, and it may be a question that comes back to us in the budget process: what does it cost us to absorb that portion?”

The teens had also asked that bus frequency be increased, but Cumming said bus trip frequency directly relates to population density.

“Frequency for a spread out community is extremely difficult to do, cost-wise and service-wise,” Cumming said during the meeting.

The mayor told Vernon Matters that frequency could be made possible through increased density, and there may be the need in the future as more three- or four-storey residential buildings are constructed in the city.

He encouraged people who want to see more frequent public transportation services to fill out the joint Official Community Plan and Transportation Plan survey to have their say in the matter.

Original Story: Vernon council advised to support call for free transit for teens

Vernon teens are hoping the city will back their ask for free transit services.

At the May 13 regular meeting, Jade Ha and Haylee Andal, two local teenagers involved with the Transit for Teens movement, asked Vernon city council to expand the Get on Board! program, allowing teens to get access to free transit around B.C.

RELATED NEWS: Students seek support for free teen transit in Vernon

The students at Fulton Secondary told council that expanding the program, which currently provides free bus trips to children aged 6 to 12, would mean that low-income youth would be able to take transit. They also said expanding the program would encourage youth to use public transportation more often, creating a lifelong habit, reduce potential emissions, and ease traffic congestion.

After receiving the presentation, council tasked staff with reporting back on the implications of providing free transit to teens.

A report has since been compiled, which shows that teens pay $2.50 per single ride in the City of Vernon, $6.00 for a day pass, and $40 for a monthly pass, which can be a hindrance to youth facing socioeconomic barriers.

It was not stated how much money BC Transit makes on youth fares in Vernon.

However, the report did note that the call for expanding the Get on Board! program to include teens has been growing throughout the province.

“These actions align with the increasing momentum seen from municipalities across the province this spring,” the report by Anne Huisken, Active Transportation Coordinator, stated.

“For example, recently, Saanich endorsed a resolution to UBCM (Union of B.C. Municipalities) to expand the Get on Board! Program, Oak Bay endorsed free transit for all youth and seniors 65 years and older, in their request to UBCM, and Kelowna City Council directed their administration to explore the feasibility of expanding their program to include youth up to the age of 18. Further, Victoria provides free transit to youth up to and including the age of 18 since 2021, and Kitimat followed suit in September 2023. Additionally, Penticton expanded their program in March 2024 to include youth up to the age of 25.”

The staff report recommended council send a letter to the province in support of the expansion of the program to include youth aged 13 to 18.

It also recommend the city submit a resolution to the 2024 UBCM convention, asking the organization to also lobby the provincial government and expand the program.

The report did not call for the City of Vernon to make transit free for all youth under the age of 18, only that it vouch for the program’s expansion to the upper levels of government.

The report and recommendations will be discussed at council’s meeting Monday, June 10.