A little bit about fares...

It's the quarter of a billion dollar technology that was supposed to simplify how we pay for the bus. But after years of delays, the contact-less Presto fare card is still not being rolled out in a wide manner, and people are still milling for change, with change.

Every single city, town, or region has its own prices for their systems, and GO Transit charges commuters by distance. If I suddenly walked off the Airport Express bus from Pearson in Richmond Hill and headed north to Beaverton by York Region Transit and another GO bus, I'm still paying three different fares!

The province needs to step up with its Metrolinx division by finding a much more simpler fare system that would put riders on the fastest mode for the least fuss, from any node. Hong Kong, London, and Brisbane, Australia are excellent examples where transportation authorities have a simple system applying to all public operators who charge on distance. In other words, people don't pay for the different buses or transit they take, but where and how far they go.

Presto will not change a thing no matter how much money we're pouring in, if we don't find a quicker, smarter way to use it.