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Public transit fees reduced for students

Jun 12, 2017 | 11:10 AM

 

MEDICINE HAT, AB — The Alberta government announcing Monday morning plans to reduce the cost of public transit passes for students in Alberta.

Starting in September, students who live 2.4 kilometres or more from their designated school and take municipal transit will only pay the difference between the cost of a municipal transit pass and provincial transportation funding.

Students riding transit in Calgary, Fort McMurray, Grande Prairie, Lethbridge, Medicine Hat, Red Deer and Sherwood Park will see savings.

The Transportation Ministry says based on current fees for student transit riders, students attending junior high and high schools in Edmonton are expected to save least $300 per school year. In Calgary those families could save approximately $550 per school year.

Provincial transportation funding is $549 per student per school year (ten months).

For families in Medicine Hat ten months of transit passes would cost $387.50 per student. Under this new program, qualifying families would pay nothing for their childrens’ transit passes.

“That is a significant amount of money, especially for the families who are paying fees for two, three, or 5 children,” said education Minister David Eggen. “This money can now be directed to other family priorities such as paying the mortgage, groceries or other family priorities.”

School District 76 said it already covers transportation costs for students. There are around 20 who use public transit for special reasons or circumstances and the cost for the passes is already covered by the school district.

“We have a handful of students that we acquire public transit passes for with the outreach programs, but that’s it,” said Olson. “The rest of our students are either on yellow school buses, which are contracted, or in special needs situations we have taxis for some of them as well.”

Olson says families here won’t be given the option of public transit or school buses, as the cost for busing is already covered by funding the board receives from the province.

CHAT News also reached out to the Medicine Hat Catholic Board to Education, but hasn’t heard back on the possible implications for their students.

It is expected that approximately 33,000 students across the province will benefit as a result of lower transit pass fees.