Transit Windsor projects a $180,000 budget deficit by the end of the year because the city did not budget enough for fuel expenses. The budget is off six per cent as the city expected to pay on average $1 per litre, while actual costs have been $1.06 for diesel fuel.
Coun. Bill Marra, who is chairman of the Transit Windsor Board of Directors who met Friday, said the city buys its fuel in bulk and gets a discount so the price doesn’t match what residents pay at the pump.
To address the budget shortfall, transit staff have deferred discretionary spending like facility repairs, eliminating subscriptions to periodicals, deferred training programs that are “desperately needed” and reduced printing costs, reusing file folders, scraps of paper and monitoring office supplies, according to budget documents.
Projections for the 2014 budget have the transit service coping with a $1.5 million projected funding hole because of pressures from salary, wage and benefit increases, pension payments, fleet repairs and building maintenance. The organization has identified a way to increase revenues by $990,000 by moving to a year-round bus schedule instead of the reduced service in the summer months because students are out of school and adding buses to popular routes.
Tony Houad, director of corporate services, said moving to year-round service will increase ridership because it will attract people who work to the transit system.
Adding buses to the Transway 1C, Crosstown 2 and Lauzon 10 routes is projected to increase ridership because buses are currently full and unable to pick up some riders, he said. When Transit Windsor increases its ridership, it gets a corresponding hike in gas tax revenue.
Attempts to narrow the budget gap still leave a $600,000 hole. The need for a 10 per cent transit fare hike, which will bring in $615,000 in extra revenue, might come back to council, which rejected the request in the 2013 budget.
“Residents will accept a fare increase if service improves,” Marra said. “They won’t accept it if service is less.”
The $28 million transit budget includes $15.9 million in revenues from fares and the gas tax and a $12.2 million contribution from the city. Council gave the transit system an extra $2.4 million this year for capital expenses that included fleet maintenance and setting up a GPS bus tracking system that will give riders real-time information about the location of a bus.
Also under consideration Friday was the Transit Windsor strategic plan. The report, which was not adopted, proposed as cost saving measures eliminating Sunday and holiday service, cutting the hours of operation and reducing bus routes. Rather than taking those drastic steps, Penny Williams, Transit Windsor general manager, said the organization will continue sharing services with the city to reduce costs.
“There are a whole host of things we’ll be looking at,” she said.
Transit Windsor has seen a three per cent annual increase in ridership over the past few years and hasn’t had a fare increase since 2008. Cash fares were harmonized two years ago and eliminated discounts that can still be received on tickets and passes for seniors and students.
