Owen Sound reinstating transit fares, parking enforcement in June

Owen Sound will soon begin charging people again to use its public transit system and resume parking enforcement in the downtown core.

Both measures were halted March 19 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, with city officials saying at the time that the goal was to keep residents and employees safe while providing needed services.

But with the Ontario government slowly lifting restrictions across the province – such as by now allowing most stores to operate – and Owen Sound forecasting an $850,000 operating shortfall for 2020 because of the pandemic, council decided Monday to reinstate bus fares June 19 and a reduced level of parking enforcement June 1.

“We’re trying to manage our budget deficit as a result of COVID and trying to get back to normal as the province gets back to normal,” Mayor Ian Boddy said in an interview after the vote.

City officials decided March 18 – a day after Ontario Premier Doug Ford declared a provincial state of emergency due to COVID-19 – to temporarily waive transit fares, halt downtown parking enforcement and relax mandatory bag tag rules starting March 19.

The intent of the transit fare decision was to ensure workers didn’t have to handle cash until proper procedures could be implemented and to avoid passengers having to come in close contact with drivers while depositing cash in the fare boxes, public works and engineering director Dennis Kefalas told council.

The city was also looking to reduce the financial burden on residents whose incomes were impacted by COVID-19, he said.

Since the pandemic began, the city has implemented various measures to make the transit system safer. They include limiting the number of people that can ride the bus at the same time.

Kefalas told council that waiving the transit fares has reduced the anticipated revenue from the system by about $40,000, as of April 30.

“While the city will not be able to make this up, especially given the procedure of limiting the number of passengers on the bus at any given time, action still has to be taken to lessen the financial impact. Thus the need to reinstate transit fares,” he said.

Kefalas said the city has also noticed that some people are riding the bus just “for something to do” because it’s free and that is taking “valuable seats away from those who really need it.”

In addition, the federal government has rolled out temporary support programs to help people whose income has been affected by COVID-19, he said. And demand for public transit is expected to rise as more businesses and workplaces reopen.

Staff recommended council reinstate transit fares June 19 to give the city time to put the necessary procedures and barriers in place to allow staff to complete financial transactions, such as selling bus passes and tickets, safely, Kefalas said.

After approving the recommendations presented by Kefalas, council turned their attention to a report from city clerk Briana Bloomfield on parking enforcement.

She told council the Owen Sound Downtown Improvement Area board of management passed a motion May 13 requesting the city reinstate enforcement at reduced levels as soon as possible.

That vote happened a day before the province announced that retail businesses with street-front entrances could reopen May 19.

Boddy said the OSDIA wants to see the usual “turnover of vehicles” again on main street.

Bloomfield’s report included two options for council: reinstate parking enforcement at pre-COVID-19 levels beginning June 1 or start out with 25 hours of enforcement per week, with a focus on 2^nd Avenue East, beginning June 1 and moving to full 40-hours-per-week enforcement Sept. 8.

Council chose the latter option.

Since Owen Sound has a business-sponsored, complimentary parking system, most of the enforcement relates to vehicles that have remained in a spot longer than the “free parking” time limits, which are two hours in on-street spaces and five hours in municipal lots.

Bloomfield said monthly parking passes for municipal lots will not be required until city hall is reopened to the public.

City officials say they anticipate a loss of about $10,000 in parking revenue as a result of having no enforcement from March 18 to June 1.

Earlier this month, council also voted to end the temporary relaxation of the city’s mandatory bag tag policy.

As of May 19, all trash bags have required a $2.50 city bag tag in order to be picked up by Owen Sound’s waste management contractor Miller Waste.

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