City of Hamilton staff recently brought forward a recommendation to the Public Works Committee to make the HSR Fare Assist pilot program permanent and increase the program discount from 30 per cent to 50 per cent.
The recommendation was passed at the committee stage in a 13-0 vote and later ratified at City Council.
The discount will begin on Jan. 1, 2026.
The pilot program began on Jan. 1, 2024, and offered a 30 per cent discount on a single-ride PRESTO fare to those who are at or below Canada’s low-income measure thresholds as determined by Statistics Canada.
The most recent low-income measure threshold is $30,255 in after-tax income for a one-person household, $42,787 for a two-person household, and $60,510 for a four-person household.
Full data can be found here at the Statistics Canada website.
The adult fare for a single HSR ride with a PRESTO card is currently $2.85, which was discounted to $1.99 for those in the HSR Fare Assist pilot program.
With the new 50 per cent discount, adult fare for those in the program will be $1.42.
City staff say that the pilot has been a “clear success, improving affordability and access to transit for residents across the city.”
More than 14,000 residents were approved for the discount under the pilot program, with 89 per cent of users reportedly satisfied with the initiative.
Since families were often applying for the discount, 2,459 applicants (16.97 per cent) were classified as children and thus did not need the 30 per cent discount since they already receive free HSR fare.
Children under five are already free on the HSR with a paying customer and children ages six to 12 are free with a PRESTO card which can be picked up at a Hamilton Public Library branch.
Another 1,906 applicants (13.15 per cent) were youth (ages 13 to 19) and thus received 30 per cent off of the youth rate.
A total of 9,525 applicants (65.73 per cent) were adults, 590 (4.07 per cent) were seniors, and 10 were seniors over 80 who qualify for free fare with a Golden Age PRESTO.
The top three wards in terms of voucher redemption were Ward 3 – East Hamilton Centre (1,990 or 23.2 per cent), Ward 2 – Downtown Hamilton (1,568 or 18.3 per cent), and Ward 4 – Hamilton East (903 or 10.5 per cent).
The three wards with the lowest uptake were Ward 15 – East Flamborough-Waterdown (39 or 0.5 per cent), Ward 12 – Ancaster-West Flamborough (98 or 1.1 per cent), and Ward 11 – Glanbrook-Binbrook-Mount Hope (119 or 1.4 per cent).
It should be noted that the wards with the lowest uptake also have limited bus service.
Some local advocates are petitioning for the city to go further than a 50 per cent discount, particularly for those who are disabled.
Under the city’s previous Voluntary Pay Program, which was in place prior to Jan. 1, 2024, anyone using personal mobility devices (including walkers, wheelchairs, or scooters) or holding a Canadian National Institute for the Blind card could ride the HSR for free.
The HSR Fair Assist program replaced the Voluntary Pay Program.
Among the reasons for the change was speculation that the Voluntary Pay Program was being abused by those posing with mobility devices when they did not actually need them.
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