Whatcom Transit Authority has proposed increasing bus fare prices in response to rising operating costs and will seek board approval later this winter.
“Raising fares is not something that we take lightly. It's not something that we just decided on a whim to do,” said Genevieve Carrillo, community relations and marketing manager for Whatcom Transit Authority.
The fare for fixed routes is expected to increase from $1 to $2, while the fare for paratransit is expected to increase from $1 to $3.
WTA has also proposed replacing the day and month passes with a fare capping system with a daily fare cap of $6 and a monthly fare cap of $60.
Carrillo explained that the fare capping system will remove paying for a daily or monthly pass upfront, and instead will track what riders have paid over the day or month. Once the fare cap is reached, rides are free over that day or month.
“By fare capping, you're able to get more rides out of your dollar,” Carrillo said.
WTA bus fares have not increased in price since 2008, according to their site.
Carrillo said WTA was able to maintain a $1 fare by maintaining expenses and revenues through grants and other funding sources, but now costs for fuel, maintenance and new buses have increased since the pandemic.
“It's kind of gotten to the point now where we don't have a lot of other options if we want to continue to stay financially secure and continue to be able to provide reliable transit,” Carrillo said.
According to Carrillo, the WTA board of directors discussed the option of going fare-free, but had found that would require some kind of funding to make up for that loss, which the transit authority doesn’t have.
“Going fare-free just wasn't a sustainable option for us financially,” Carrillo said.
Whatcom Transit Authority held a public comment on Nov. 19 at the Bellingham Public Library, where the attendees expressed concern about the fare increases and suggested other options to fund public transit.
“I just feel like there's a lot of other things that we could be turning to to fund the buses, apart from taking more money from the people who are dependent on the buses,” said Daisy Musser, a frequent bus rider who attended the public comment.
Musser suggested other funding options that could incentivize more people to ride the bus as opposed to taking a personal vehicle, such as introducing a car tab fee or increasing sales tax, which makes up the largest portion of Whatcom Transit's revenue.
“In terms of sustainability and green urban transition, you want to have public transit that is as accessible as possible,” Musser said.
However, Carrillo said that introducing legislation to raise taxes would have to be put forward by the community and is tricky to get enough people to support and pass, making for a longer process.
“It's not something that we would be able to initiate or pursue on our own,” Carrillo said.
While fares only make up a small portion of operating revenues, that is still money that could be put to maintaining bus service, said Jamin Agosti, board member for Walk & Roll Bellingham.
“Ultimately, a really good transit system is the highest priority for us,” Agosti said.
Carrillo said that a fare increase carries a risk of losing riders, especially those who may only use it occasionally for recreational purposes. The transit authority hopes to alleviate this by expanding who qualifies for reduced fare.
“That would include seniors, veterans and paratransit riders,” Carrillo said. “We're also looking to expand that to include students and folks who are eligible for Medicare.”
Residents and students can continue to get involved through the WWU Transportation Advisory Committee, the Whatcom Council of Governments Community Transportation Advisory group or attend WTA board meetings held every first and third Thursday at 8 a.m. at 4011 Bakerview Spur, Carrillo said.
“I think it'd be awesome to have some more student representation advocating for what they want to see within transportation in our county,” Carrillo said.
DuPree Nugent (he/him) is a city news reporter for The Front this fall quarter. He is a third-year student studying news/editorial journalism and English with a creative writing emphasis. In his free time, he enjoys long-distance running, listening to music and writing poems and short stories. He can be reached at dupreenugent.thefront@gmail.com.
