Brampton Transit launching $15 monthly pass for seniors

Thestar.com
July 5, 2019
Graeme Frisque

Seniors in Brampton are about to get a big break on transit in the city.

Brampton Transit will launch a special $15 monthly Presto pass for seniors in September. The new discounted passes will go on sale Aug. 6 at Brampton Transit terminals but won’t be active and usable until Sept. 1, said the city in a release.

All Brampton residents 65 years or older will be eligible for the discounted pass. The new discount only applies to seniors’ passes. There is no change to existing adult and child fares and passes.

In comparison, a TTC monthly pass for seniors costs $122.45.

Brampton council committed to instituting a $15 monthly seniors transit pass earlier this year, with the goal of making it free for those over 65 by the end of this council term in 2022.

“Who is more appropriate to start with free transit than seniors? They’re the ones who have built our community,” Mayor Patrick Brown said in March, adding the $15 pass is the first step in a phased-in process toward making transit entirely free for seniors.

According to a city staff report earlier this year, the reduced seniors pass will cost the city an estimated $400,000 to $450,000 in annual revenue. That number could increase to $600,000 to $700,000 by 2031 as the city’s senior population grows.