As some cities in North America massively increase transit costs for World Cup matches, politicians in Toronto are pledging to keep train, bus and subway fares unchanged.
Travel to and from some soccer stadiums in the United States on matchdays is raising concerns for travelling fans, as local agencies hike the cost of a ticket.
In Boston, a ticket that normally costs US$20 return from downtown to the stadium will be set at US$80. Travel from New York to New Jersey for matches will be US$150, compared to a normal fare of less than US$15.
In Toronto, however, the provincial and municipal governments have both pledged to keep fares at their usual rates.
Between June 12 and July 2, Toronto will host six men’s World Cup matches featuring countries such as Germany, Canada and Senegal with tens of thousands expected to arrive to take part.
“Absolutely not, not increasing fares,” Transportation Minister Prabmeet Sarkaria said at a news conference on Thursday.
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“In fact, we’re getting increased services to accommodate the number of individuals that will be in the city and also make it much easier to use public transit, whether it’s UP Express or our Lakeshore (GO) lines.”
Provincial transit agency Metrolinx operates a bus and train network across the Greater Golden Horseshoe.
Trains on its Lakeshore East and Lakeshore West stop at Exhibition Station, which is beside Toronto’s soccer stadium. A trip from Union Station to the stadium costs $3.70 with a Presto card.
Meanwhile, Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow also promised the city’s buses, streetcars and subways would not see prices rise.
“Transit needs to remain affordable; no fare increase,” she declared.
“As people of the world are coming to the city for the World Cup, we wanted to make it so they could take public transit. So we’re doing integration, we’re working together, collaborating.”
Two Toronto streetcar routes, as well as dedicated buses, will head to Toronto Stadium at Exhibition Place during the tournament. Tickets cost $3.35 with a card and are valid for two hours.
The city’s mobility plan for the World Cup relies heavily in encouraging people to walk, cycle and use public transit instead of driving or ride sharing to games.
To accommodate the swell in visitors and locals heading downtown, Toronto is proposing to fully and partially close some roads and suspend parking in parts of the city, hoping most will choose transit or walking.
According to the transportation plan drawn up for the city, Toronto is hoping to see 70 per cent of people arrive at the stadium either on the TTC or by GO train.
During the World Cup, the TTC is planning to run enhanced streetcar service on its King, Harbourfront and Bathurst routes. During peak hours on weekdays, the King streetcar will run every four minutes, Harbourfront will run every seven and Bathurst will run roughly every five minutes.
Toronto’s bike share program will be ramped up around the stadium with valet service to accept bikes even when docks are full in particularly busy areas.
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