Canadian publication The Tyee has put forward a case for why giving public transport away free would work. You may be thinking, that’s ludicrous, we’d end up paying for it in our taxes, and what’s the difference. Think about this, if there were no charge for public transport, there would also be significant savings. No fare evaders to chase, no tickets to print, fewer staff required.

The environmental benefits of free public transport are numerous:

* reducing greenhouse gas emissions
* reducing other air pollutants
* reducing noise pollution (especially with trams)
* reducing run-off of toxic chemicals into fresh water supplies and ocean environments
* reducing overall consumption of oil and petrol/diesel
* reducing litter (train/bus tickets)
* saving trees by eliminating the need to print tickets

17 More reasons for free transit:

Fare-free transit brings many benefits, some of which include:

1. a barrier-free transportation option to every member of the community (no more worries about exact change, expiring transfers, or embarrassment about how to pay)
2. eliminating a "toll" from a mode of transportation that we as a society want to be used (transit is often the only way of getting around that charges a toll)
3. reducing the inequity between the subsidies given to private motorized vehicle users and public transport users
4. reducing, and in some cases eliminating, the need for private motorized vehicle parking
5. reducing greenhouse gas emissions, other air pollutants, noise pollution (especially with electric trolleys), and run-off of toxic chemicals into fresh water supplies and ocean environments
6. reducing overall consumption of oil and gasoline
7. eliminating the perceived need to spend billions on roads and highways (now up to $7 billion for the proposed Gateway Project in Vancouver)
8. eliminating the perceived need to spend billions on bigger car-carrying ferries ($2.5 billion for BC Ferries' new super-sized boats and ramps)
9. contributing significantly to the local economy by keeping our money in our communities
10. reducing litter (in Vancouver, the newer transfers/receipts have overtaken fast food packaging for most common garbage found on our streets)
11. saving trees by eliminating the need to print transfers and tickets
12. allowing all bus doors to be used to load passengers, making service faster and more efficient
13. allowing operators (drivers) to focus on driving safely
14. giving operators more time to answer questions
15. providing operators a safer work environment since fare disputes are eliminated
16. eliminating fare evasion and the criminalization of transit-using citizens
17. fostering more public pride in shared, community resources


A free public transport success story

It is 10 years since Belgium got worldwide media attention for a very ambitious project: free public transport in Hasselt. From the start until today, it remains a success story.

The new city council of 1995 realised that public transport was a major problem. There were only eight city buses and two lines in Hasselt before 1 July 1997, which covered about 500,000 km a year and only transported 360,000 passengers in 1996. After the renovation of the ring road around the city, turning it into a pedestrian-friendly and tree-clad ‘Groene Boulevard’, the city council presented an ambitious project to transport company De Lijn. With the words ‘Hasselt zal nooit meer hetzelfde zijn’ (’Hasselt will never be the same’), the former mayor and later minister Steve Stevaert launched free buses on 1 July 1997.

The project was an instant success. Until 30 June 1997, there were an average of 1,000 bus passengers a day in Hasselt. Today, the average is 12,600 passengers a day. There are now 46 city buses on nine lines, including a boulevard shuttle and a city centre shuttle. Two nightlines run at night. Altogether, these city buses cover 2,258,638 km in a year. All this benefits mobility in Hasselt.

Here is link to an excellent series the Tyee started in July about Public Transport.

Free Public Transport.org's site with all kinds of information