Riding the bus or LRT in Edmonton could cost you a little more. The city is considering higher fares in 2025.
“I don’t think it is a good deal,” said one Edmonton transit rider.
It’s a hard pill for transit riders to swallow. Some who CityNews spoke to say it’s unfortunate, and that it won’t be good for a lot of people.
But city administration says higher fares are needed to address the funding gap for ETS.
If you tap an ARC Card, a single trip would be going from $2.75 to $3.50. That price rises to $4.25 if you pay by cash. Additionally, month fair caps are also increasing.
Proposed 2025 ETS fares:
- ARC Single Trips: $3.50
- Cash Fare: $4.25
- Adult Monthly Fare Cap: $120
- Youth/Senior Monthly Fare Cap: $78
But, Edmonton Transit Services says the price increase is needed, in part, to cover the increase in Edmontonians needing the discounted low-income transit passes.
“These budget challenges, increased costs for core service components like fuel, maintenance and parts and reduced revenue required careful consideration and very difficult choices. We don’t take this lightly,” said Carrie Hotton-MacDonald, the branch manager of Edmonton Transit Services.
Hotton-MacDonald says increasing fares also allows for increased security on transit.
“More surveillance cameras, more personnel that kinda boots on the ground, more joint deployment teams. All of those measures together are going to continue to make improvements.”
The proposed fare hike is for 2025 and will be discussed by city council at the end of the month.