Is HRM Council trying to trick the poor, the sick and the vulnerable Seniors out of their pension money ?

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Halifax Council seems to be taking advantage of the weakest and most vulnerable of all the HRM citizens ? Councilors have devised a devious financial plan that could save HRM Parents a lot of money but will cause heavy financial loss to HRM Seniors ? The plan is to terminate the longtime Senior special ticket category and then to manipulate the current transit ticket price structure in a way that will among other things immedeately impose a 57 % raise to current Senior's bus ticket fares ? They will then use the money gained from the scheme to pay for Kids to ride the buses all they want for free ? Parents Guardians and Granparents will save a lot of money by no longer being responsible to buy transit tickets for their Children because their fares will now be paid for by the HRM Senior citizens ?

" I'll take a Senior's ticket Please " ? "Oh no you won't you old dinosaur. That's stone age stuff now Gramps just like that useless old statue down at Cornwallis Park. We got a new smarter generation in HRM Council now and they're gettin rid of those systemic discriminatory bargain bus rides ? The truth is that all you rich old bastards been paying less than everyone else ? And the truth is our generation is smarter now, and we're doing some long overdo systemic history cleansing ! So say good-bye to the special treatment you been getting all these years just by claiming to be old, or a veteran, or poor, or handicapped or whatever diverse lame excuse you old buggers use ? That non-inclusive Senior's ticket is history Gramps,, and it's time you old relics got modern and joined in reconciliation, diversity and inclusion ? And that's the truth ? "

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Halifax City Hall, Halifax Nova Scotia - Is it the end of the long running honorary Senior's discount ticket ? Halifax Councilors have devised a devious plan that appears to manipulate current transit ticket pricing in a way that will terminate the age old honorary Seniors ticket category used by Seniors, and then charge them an extra out of pocket 57% increase for a Senior's ticket ? All of the money raised in this way at the expense of Seniors will be used to pay for a select group of transit riders, (as chosen by this Council ), to take all the rides they want anywhere they want for absolutely free ?

Halifax City Hall, Halifax Nova Scotia - Following a recent private study by Council some Councilors have declared that most Seniors who ride the public transit system are well-off ? ( one would think that 'well-off seniors' would have their own cars and wouldn't have to ride the bus) ? Anyway, based on such unusual logic and intelligence, and led by Mr. Marc Santilli, (Halifax Transit manager of technical services ), it would appear Council has devised a plan that would manipulate current metro transit ticket prices in a way that will adversely affect HRM Senior citizens and also put an end to their longstanding honorary 'Seniors' discount ticket category ?

Their plan calls for an immediate cease and desist order to be placed on the long running special Seniors' ticket category, and in addition to this to also require these same Senior citizens who have now already lost their special ticket category to also absorb the added hardship and personal expense of paying an extra out-of-pocket one dollar more per ticket after Council raises the current Senior's ticket price from the current 1.75 up to 2.75 ? All of the resulting money raised from the manipulating that seems to target elderly Senior citizens, ( the current 'student' category will not be touched ), is to then be used by the City to pay for the Council's Children, Grandchildren, and all other Children in HRM under age 12, to enjoy totally free and unlimited rides to anywhere they want in the city, at any time night or day on an already overtaxed public transit system ?

Many local Seniors, pensioners, veterans, disabled, poverty-stricken, widowed and other sick, elderly and financially strapped elderly citizens will not be looking forward to having to take long walks in order to reach chosen destinations, or for having to choose between food, medicine or bus tickets as they are now forced to pay for throngs of young freeloaders to overrun the crowded buses with free rides ? And :

1) Tax the bus system's limited resources with numerous unnecessary passenger joyrides on the buses because they're free ?

2) Over-crowd a limited availability of seating especially during rush hours ?

3) Slow down the entire transit operation due to a need for the many extra starts and stops now required to load and unload the many new freeloading youthful riders ?

4) Create an added duty and responsibility for bus drivers due to extra time now required to perform proof of passenger ID age checks ?

5) Create an added duty for the driver to update and consult his daily local lost child and run-away child news bulletins ?

6) Create an added duty for the driver who must now deal with an increase in the demand for handling driver/passenger behavior reprimands that address all of the noise, confusion and commotion being generated in the confined crowded bus interior ?

7) An increase in the already highest transit system bus Driver I Quit record ?

In closing, will this new ticket pricing scheme serve to transform a HRM bus and ferry transit system that is already strained crowded and suffering from a crucial driver shortage, into some kind of mobile Children's traveling playground, or perhaps maybe a free mobile babysitting service, or maybe even an aider, abettor and enabler for HRM run-away kids ?

*** 2020 Covi update 2020 **** New trouble for HRM bus drivers - Now drivers must contend with the many added precautions, problems, responsibilities, and extra duties suddenly placed on them by the pandemic ?

**** Note *** Further analysis, study and recommendations by this Council may be forthcoming ?

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Some relevant new clippings :

Halifax proposing to make buses free for kids, but hike rates for seniors click

Halifax cancels 75 bus trips, transit union says staff shortages will get worse. click

At least three Halifax Transit workers have refused work over the past week, claiming more and more passengers are refusing to wear face coverings. click

Feb/2023 - Halifax Transit shortages will continue for weeks, union predicts click

Feb/2023 - The Nova Scotia Islamic Community Centre (NSICC) is calling for better access to public transit service to its location for its users. click

Sir Edward Cornwallis statue where is the iconic statue hidden and better yet, why was it ever tore down and after 88 years removed from Cornwallis Park ? click

Sidewalk Sam trashes HRM transit ,, "without a car I was forced into depending on the most problem plagued, mismanaged and dysfunctional public transit system in the world that holds the Canadian record for fewest relevant stop and go destinations, most running lates, most unannounced cancellations and highest take this job and shove it driver walkaways, " click

Feb 2021 - Halifax Transit cuts fares for children 12 and under ! " great idea for the freeloaders , but Why is this Council intent on destroying a Transit System already at the breaking point ?" click

Aug/2023 - Elderly couple assaulted on Halifax Transit by a violent gang of youngsters ? Do we need security on buses ? click

Aug 23,2023 - New Halifax transit safety bylaw aims to reduce incidents of on-board violence click

Steve Murphy reports on the proposed seniors 57% ticket price increase and elimination of the special Seniors fare category ? click

HRM hits pause on axing Halifax Transit discount for Seniors citizens but does not apologize ? Would have seen single fare for seniors increase by 57% and the historic special Seniors category eliminated .. click

Nov 24 2023 - Bus violence and assaults way up in last 2 years - Halifax considers hiring public safety officers to ride shotgun on the buses.. click

Apr 22 2024 - Our members are burning out': Transit union says staff shortages hitting breaking point ! click

June 25th, 2024 - More relief staff needed to keep Halifax ferry service reliably afloat, says union, click

Sept 2024 Transit routes slashed to the bone in HRM, arrival times consistently late, shortage of Drivers is a crisis, Services down and unreliable, but fares going up ? The cost of a single ride for adults is to increase from $2.75 to $3 beginning Sept. 1 2024 .. Senior fares will increase by 25 cents – from $2 to $2.25. kids now ride free . click

Sept / 2024 - Halifax City Council has created the worst transit system ? but the kids can ride free ? Halifax buses are late and overcrowded regularly drive by scheduled stops. hated by both their employees and their customers.. unreliable and undependable ? click

nov 13, 2024 - Ottawa increasing seniors passes 120% in 2025 budget ? click

nov 15, 2024 - Ottawa backing down on 120% hike on senior transit passes. CTV News , click

Sidewalk Sam says, Sept / 2024 - Sam was right about HRM Transit ? HRM transit system offers the poorest public service in Canada ? But aside from this, now, thanks to the HRM Council, all the kids in the city can now ride the system all they want anytime they want for free on a system already overtaxed ? Buses in Halifax are few and far apart, unreliable, undependable and unsafe. They are constantly late for scheduled stops and many are cancelled without notice ? Buses often drive by their scheduled stops because there is no room left on the bus ? There's a critical shortage of trained and experienced drivers and many of the few daily drivers they still have are unfamiliar with the area and many are exhausted and constantly booking off sick ? There is a surprisingly small and inadequate number of depots to adequately serve HRM citizens with the destinations that are needed ? They hand out confusing apps and misleading scheduling info that confuses their clients ? There's standing room only on packed buses at peak hours ? But aside from all of this, and also thanks to this HRM council,, Now all the kids in the city can ride this broken system all they want anytime they want for free ? click

The Halifax Transit Authority