How will the amalgamation of the Niagara Regional Transit on Jan. 1 affect public transit in Thorold?
As ThoroldToday reported, the different municipalities in Niagara have voted to consolidate their public transit under one regional banner.
During last night’s Thorold City Council meeting, council members had plenty of questions for Regional Councillor Tim Whalen—who sits on the Niagara Transit Commission—regarding the upcoming change.
“Everything will just translate over to the new system,” Regional Councillor Whalen told city councillors. “The routes will stay the same, the times will stay the same. The only plus is that they’re adding another one half a million hours across the region to service people that are under serviced or nonexistent at the present time.”
Councillor Henry D’Angela wondered if local bus passes would remain valid and Regional Councillor Whalen answered that he believed they would be, although he would have to verify that information.
Would there be more public transit available in rural communities such as Port Robinson and Allanburg? asked Councillor Jim Handley.
“As of January 1 the existing routes will just convert over to regional transit until we figure all the bugs out, make sure everything goes smoothly,” Regional Councillor Whalen answered. “Eventually the on-demand as well as hopefully future bus routes will come into existence.”
Councillor Handley also had some questions about the financial picture and if there would be savings or increases in costs.
“For the time being I don’t think anything will change,” Regional Councillor Whalen answered. “It all depends on the capacity and the expanding of the services going forward.”
