In a whirlwind 24 hours, Alberta’s UCP government has reversed the decision to cut its share of funding for low-income transit passes in the province’s two largest cities.
The mayors of Calgary and Edmonton both raised the alarm on Tuesday about the funding cut, which could have jeopardized the future of the passes in the two major centres.
In a statement sent to CBC News on Wednesday morning, Seniors, Community and Social Services Minister Jason Nixon’s office says that Alberta’s government “understands the need to support low-income Albertans.”
“Following conversations with the two largest cities, it is clear that the cities are not able to pay for their full programs at this time. As a result, Alberta’s government will continue to extend this funding to the cities and work with them to ensure their low-income transit program continues to be funded in the future.”
Calgary received $6.2 million from the province last year for the program, which allows low-income residents to buy monthly transit passes at a reduced rate, on a sliding scale based on household income.
In the first three months of this year, 119,000 people qualified for the program.
Calgary Mayor Jyoti Gondek told reporters Wednesday she spoke with Nixon, and he confirmed the province would be providing Calgary $6.2 million — the same amount as last year — for its low-income transit program.
“There’s a comment about how the city simply can’t afford to do its part, and this is a subsidy. Let’s be perfectly clear, income supports are not a municipal responsibility,” said Gondek.
“Income support is the job of the provincial government.”
In Edmonton, the program is accessed each month by over 25,000 residents.
Edmonton Mayor Amarjeet Sohi said he appreciates that the provincial government recognized the negative impact defunding the city’s Ride Transit program would have.
“The City of Edmonton is proud to support this program, even though it is an example of Alberta’s big cities stepping in to fund support programs for low income Albertans that fall under provincial jurisdiction,” reads Sohi’s statement.
Passes are the cities’ responsibility: minister
The Alberta government announced it was adding an additional $6 million in funding for Calgary and Edmonton’s low-income transit programs in February 2023.
On Wednesday, Nixon confirmed the amount of money promised to the two cities would remain the same for the rest of this fiscal year.
The minister told reporters the decision to stop subsidizing the low-income transit pass program was about meeting provincial budget targets, but after listening to feedback from Calgary and Edmonton’s mayors, the province would “maintain the funding that [it] committed to.”
Nixon called the provincial government’s financial support for low-income transit passes in the two cities a pilot project that keeps being renewed. He said such programs are the cities’ responsibilities.
“We will make sure that where we end up is in a spot where the cities can afford to maintain this program,” he said. “But we’ll have to figure out the best way to bring permanency to this.”
The minister also said he didn’t know that his department met with the two cities to discuss the budget target process, which is when the conversation of funds for low-income transit passes occurred.
“So we’ll have to continue to look elsewhere to be able to meet our fiscal obligations.”
In Edmonton, the city’s Ride Transit program is accessed each month by over 25,000 residents. (Chris Mihailides/CBC)
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said she doesn’t believe the situation was handled “particularly well.”
Smith was asked about the revisions to the province’s funding during an appearance on the CBC’s Power and Politics on Wednesday.
“It’s unfortunate that it was communicated the way it was. I think it caught the mayor of Calgary, Edmonton by surprise,” said Smith.
“We don’t like to do that so we’ll be a lot more careful about how we have some of these program changes communicated in the future.”
Advocates for poverty reduction say affordable transit is an important strategy.
Meaghon Reid, executive director of Vibrant Communities Calgary, said in an interview that she believes the province heard the amount of “distress and urgency” in response to the decision to cut-funding.
“People who rely on this transit pass and who are living in low-income have had a very distressing 24 hours,” Reid said. “This sends a signal that we can’t ignore affordability.”