Projet Montral proposes cutting STM fares for seniors, children, those living in poverty

ProjetMontralmayoral candidateValriePlanteannounced a public transit plan Tuesday that would see bus and Metro fares lowered and eventually eliminated for seniors and children under 12.

Plante said Tuesday thatshe wants "to be the mayor of public transport" and would reduce fares for people living below the poverty line by 40 per cent.

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She said reducedfares for low-income people have already been introducedin other Canadian cities, such as Ottawa and Guelph, Ont.

Plante said a Projet Montral administration would draw on the Quebec government's Green Fund to subsidize fares. Thatfund is meant to combat poverty and offer financialsupport to helpstudents getto school.

"These amazing measures have been requested for a very, very long time by the population," Plante said.

Coderrehighlights adding buses

The incumbent mayor, Denis Coderre,is standingbyhis established approach to public transit.

He said his "balanced" vision for public transit has been approved by experts,and he criticizedPlante'splan to move towardsfree fares.

"If you give everything for free, it can cost up to $35 million just in Montreal itself,"Coderresaid.

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Coderre pointed out that in his first term as mayor, his administration invested heavily in public transit, adding buses and updating the STM's fleet to include electric buses.

Projet Montral councillor Craig Sauv had a different take on Coderre's commitment to public transit.

Sauv said that in 2013,Coderre promised there would be a progressive fare structure forpublic transit, based on income, but after he was elected, he denied ever making that promise.

"Unfortunately, there won't be a transit debate because Mayor Coderre doesn't have the courage to go up against Mme. Plante," Sauvsaid.

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Sauvwas referring to the fact that Coderre has refused to participate in more than two debates with Plante one in English and one in French.

Coderredefended that decisionSunday, saying that he is meeting people at public events daily and answering their questions in person.

Pink vs. Blue Metro lines

Plantehasannounced in the past that her administrationwouldalso add a new, Pink line to the Montreal Metrosystem. It would run diagonally from Montreal North through downtownand potentiallyall the way to Lachine.

• Projet Montral wants to add 'Pink line' to Metro

Coderrecountered the Pink line proposal with his own proposed extension ofthe Blue line which would see the line continuedinto Anjou, in northeast Montreal.

Meanwhile, Coalition Montral'smayoral candidate, Jean Fortier, released a statement Tuesday afternoonsaying he would begin work on a Blue line extension early in his mandate.

Fortier'sproposal would extend the line south, going from SnowdonMetro station, the line's western terminus in Cte-des-Neiges,to downtown Montreal.

"My proposal is much more realistic than Valrie Plante's," he said.

Fortier's Blue line would add a stop at Beaver Lake, in Mount Royal Park,and end in Griffintown.

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