Question 1:
What role can transit play in reducing traffic congestion and mitigating increasing expenditures on road maintenance?
Transit is an important part of any urban environment. It provides users an affordable means of travel to and from their daily destinations. If transit were the chosen method of travel for more residents, it would certainly reduce traffic congestion. Less congestion means less idling, which results in lower carbon emissions. The benefits are very well documented. In addition, fewer vehicles travelling over the same stretch of roadway reduces the load and stress fatigue on the pavement. It along wonít prevent road maintenance, but it will help.
The problem that we need to solve is making public transit a more viable option. It needs to be more accessible, more cost effective, and faster at getting riders to their destinations. I’m committed to working with city staff and council colleagues to make it better.
Question 2:
In your opinion, what can be done to improve specialized transit for disabled riders and would you be in favour of raising the budget for this increasingly important service?
I have a child with special needs. They may never be able to drive themselves, so this question resonates with me. Transit is an essential service and needs to be continued for disabled riders. The city does have Specialized Transit that offers door-to-door service and connects with Hamiltonís DARTS services and Oakvilleís Care-a-Van. I am supportive of expanding the program.
Question 3:
Burlington’s and Halton’s Official Plans call for transit’s share of all trips to rise to 20% (from the current figure of about 4%) by 2031. Do you support this objective?
It’s an aggressive goal to achieve, but I don’t think it’s unattainable. Before any major shift is going to happen, we need to understand why residents choose to drive. In my opinion, for many, public transit just doesn’t offer the convenience. An analysis needs to be done for what potential riders want against the cost of implementing those changes.
Question 4:
With record ridership and increasing demand, are you in favour of supporting continued expansion of Burlington’s transit system?
I favour expansion of the transit service to meet demand. However, expansion needs to be done responsibly against the cost of attracting each new rider.
Question 5:
Have you ever used Burlington Transit? Would you be willing to give it a try?
I have used Burlington Transit. The drivers have been courteous, the buses have been clean, and the drive was relaxing. Unfortunately, when I have used the service, it’s been slow on the return leg of the trip. This has typically been due to too many riders and not enough capacity to meet the demand.
Question 6:
The Ontario Legislature recently passed Bill 98, the Building Homes and Improving Transportation Infrastructure Act, 2026, which gives the provincial Minister of Transportation the power to override municipal transit authorities and set routes and fares for municipal transit systems. We at BFAST have the following concerns about this legislation:
1) It could disrupt current arrangements between transit systems in Burlington, Oakville and Hamilton that provide connections between these cities.
2) The Minister could divert Burlington Transit resources — for example, to provide service along the planned bus rapid transit corridor on Highway 5 (Dundas St.), which was supposed to have been undertaken by GO Transit. This would, in effect, download more fiscal responsibility from the province to local governments.
3) Certain initiatives by Burlington Transit, such as free fares for seniors and students, could be eliminated.
Please comment on this legislation and what measures you would undertake or support to ensure transit service levels in Burlington would not be degraded.
I can appreciate why we might be reluctant to Bill 98. Burlington has worked hard to make improvements to our system, and we’ve been seeing the results. As a council we would need to be ready to push back on any negative implementation the province would impose.
Question 7:
Over the past months, a plan has been promoted wherein a private company would provide on-demand transit service to potentially replace certain routes operated by Burlington Transit. Among BFAST’s concerns with this plan are:
1) Over-reliance on one private company to provide a service that could not be easily replaced if the provider were to fail.
2) Cost escalation and more traffic on our roads as mini-buses replaced current vehicles and more drivers were needed to move the same number of passengers.
3) Diversion of already-constrained Burlington Transit budget to a private, for-profit company, resulting in lower levels of service.
We would appreciate your comments on on-demand transit in general and the idea of diverting public budgets to private corporations.
This is an attractive means of making transit a more viable option. The first question I have is what is the private company bringing to the table? A partnership could be a means of keeping the operational costs of our fleet under control.