Proposed transit changes 'nothing more than a smoke and mirror show with Council giving with one hand and taking away with the other,' says reader

The following letter to the editor was submitted by SooToday reader Louie Lowis, president of the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1767.

Mayor and Members of Council,

I am writing to you today in regard to the most recent announcement involving transit funding for the City of Sault Ste. Marie.

On April 13, MP Terry Sheehan announced that additional monies were being provided to the city to purchase new and refurbished buses and make long needed repairs to the Transit Garage. The federal government believes in transit and will make good on its promise to improve infrastructure across the country.

Our City Council (the people the constituents of Sault Ste. Marie voted for) has voted on and approved the transit optimization study. Some of these proposed changes said to optimize the service (the service that is supposed to make the lives of Soo residents better) include new routes and the restoration of Sunday service but in order to pay for it they’ll be reducing summer operating hours.

So, transit customers will have one-hour service from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. as well as some early morning cuts. However, that reduced service will be provided by a new or refurbished bus. Additionally in an effort to be able to pay for these improvements, the bus drivers that the city cares so much about will have their working hours reduced, further impacting the local economy do to the reduction in earned wages.

This is nothing more than a smoke and mirror show with Council giving with one hand and taking away with the other. The time has come for our City Council to stop putting a price on humanity and the public service that is a right not a luxury. Residents of Sault Ste. Marie deserve a great transit service provided by the professional workers that meets the needs of all riders.

With a municipal election looming, perhaps our City Council should start thinking about how to really serve the people that put them into office.

I urge you and members of council to reconsider the proposed changes said to optimize the service and to uphold your commitment to deliver a great transit service to the citizens of Sault Ste. Marie.

Louie Lowis

President/Business Agent

Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1767