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It’s all about the bottom line, said Kelly Paleczny, general manager of the London Transit Commission (LTC).

The commission is looking to generate another $3.3 million from the farebox, which translates to fare hikes around 17 and 18 per cent.

“It really is purely just the math. That’s the level of increases it will take,” Paleczny said.

When Doug Ford’s Tories rolled back an expected doubling of the provincial gas tax – which would have brought more than $10 million in additional funding to London – it left LTC in a bind.

Burgeoning operating costs – driven in part by new service, such as buses starting earlier on Sunday and running until 1 a.m. – are putting stress on the budget.

LTC funds its service from three main sources: city hall, fares, and gas tax.

The agency has asked city hall for about 20 per cent more cash for its 2020 operating budget.

“In a nutshell, it’s that (the doubled) gas tax is no longer available. We’ve split it down the middle, and said the rider is going to take 50 per cent of the share, and the city is going to take the other 50 per cent,” Paleczny said.

Fare increase of three per cent are generally associated with about a one per cent loss of ridership, LTC staff say in the report headed to London’s transit commission on Wednesday. That would suggest London should anticipate more than a six per cent loss in ridership if it implements the fare hikes.

But Paleczny said she doesn’t expect such a steep drop given the long gap since the last bump to ticket prices and the improvements in service along the way, calling that decade-long freeze “unprecedented in Ontario.”