The threatened part privatization of Hydro One has triggered an avalanche of hostile comment, warning Ontario not to sell the family silver.

In a spirited piece in the Toronto Star earlier this week, Transit Union chief, Bob Kinnear, reminds us:

Transit in York Region north of Toronto is the only fully privatized system in Canada and charges the highest fares — $4 for a single Zone 1 bus ride, a dollar more for Zone 2. It is also the most heavily subsidized in Ontario, with taxpayers kicking in an additional $5 every time a paying passenger boards that bus.

While cash fares are being pegged for the next two years, non-cash fares continue their steady progression upwards.

A book of 10 adult tickets goes up from $33 to $34 on July 1 and up again to $35 in 2016. Similarly a book of 10 student tickets rises from $25 to $26 and up to $27 next year. The full list is shown here.

Tomorrow, York Region’s Committee of the Whole will be receiving its regular report on how many riders the buses are carrying. Councillors will find out why ridership is down in the first quarter of the year.

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