TTC eyes five-cent fare hike to avoid service cuts

A TTC streetcar picks up passengers in Toronto. (The Canadian Press/J.P. Moczulski)

TTC riders are facing another fare increase next year, as Toronto’s transit agency tries to avoid service cuts.
At a meeting Thursday, transit commissioners are expected to vote on a proposed five-cent fare increase that would take effect in 2013 and raise an estimated $18 million for rising operating costs.
The proposed hike is less than the 10-cent increase the TTC board agreed to in principle at a meeting last year.
If approved by the board, the five-cent increase would affect tokens and Metropasses, not cash fares, a spokesman for TTC chair Karen Stintz told CP24.
The price of a monthly Metropass, currently set at $126 for an adult pass and $104 for seniors and students, would go up by about $30 a year.
Adult fare tokens currently cost $7.80 for three and $18.20 for seven, while seniors and students can buy five tickets for $8.75 or 10 tickets for 17.50. Ten child tickets cost $6.
Single trip cash fares are currently set at $3 for adults, $2 for seniors and students, and 75 cents for children.
The TTC is currently facing a $30 million gap in its 2013 operating budget, Stintz says.
The annual budget is about $1.5 billion.