The presto bus pass is not an improvement on previous ways to pay your bus fare
By: Rob Hardy, Contributor
Oh, unravelling the mysteries of Presto. With news that the Hamilton Street Railway has finally dropped the axe on paper bus tickets, more local transit riders will be forced to become acquainted with the digital card payment system. Although the public will still have the option to pay with coins, using Presto is the cheaper option.
The HSR has drawn criticism for being more reliant on this ubiquitous green card. Local advocates argue that completely phasing out bus tickets will add unwelcome barriers for those with limited means, who often lack access to reliable internet access or a smartphone. Presto does have options for loading funds at Shoppers Drug Mart and transit offices, but using this system becomes much more complicated whenever a problem arises.
The HSR has drawn criticism for being more reliant on this ubiquitous green card. Local advocates argue that completely phasing out bus tickets will add unwelcome barriers for those with limited means, who often lack access to reliable internet access or a smartphone.
In recent years, McMaster University's annual HSR student bus pass began to be offered via a Presto card. This was not an improvement on the old system. Previously, we were merely given a sticker to affix onto our student card, making riding the bus as easy as showing your card to the driver. New protocols required loading our pass every school year yet still having to keep showing our student card as well.
Unfortunately, I experienced problems during this transition. After waiting more than 24 hours upon first activating my Presto Card in September, as advised, I tapped my card only to be charged a fare. For whatever reason, the HSR bus pass had not yet been applied to my Presto card, forcing me to pay for a ride that should have been “free” given the fees we pay through the McMaster Students Union.
Here comes the tricky part with the HSR-Presto alliance. Neither entity wished to give me a refund, one referring me to the other, and vice versa. In August, the same thing occurred. The MSU bus pass for 2019-2020 officially ended on Aug. 21, as we were advised to merely show our student card for the final ten days of the month until new passes would be made available.
However, due to the pandemic turning our school year virtual, the HSR decided to no longer allow students to ride the bus without paying during the last week of August. It is perplexing why the HSR saw fit to change this policy and demand fares from students, especially during such uncertain times, rather than still allowing free transit until September.
Of course, due to inadequate notice of the change, I once again found this out the hard way – by being told to tap my card and seeing it get charged. This was especially troubling since I took the time to previously ask drivers if anything had changed. Once again, no refund, despite being told one would be applied within a week.
Unfortunately, the above accounts only scratch the surface of my troubles with Presto, most of which I haven't the space to begin detailing. But suffice it to say that multiple phone calls gave me different information on the status of my account, further confused by what drivers and the cashier at Shoppers told me.
This resulted in me being short of funds for not one but two recent out-of-town trips, requiring me to convince all the drivers to let me board without paying four times.
This resulted in me being short of funds for not one but two recent out-of-town trips, requiring me to convince all the drivers to let me board without paying four times.
While I appreciate the flexibility and compassion that Presto offers, it's a system that is not as convenient as it sounds, as it downloads responsibility onto the user. Calling Presto to ask how much I would need to load onto my card and then doing so at the store is all one should need to do.
It's stressful to have loaded funds onto a card which aren't showing and to not have a ticket counter at your GO stop. It's also frustrating that Go Buses no longer accept cash payment while having to call Presto repeatedly because you have no idea what is going on.
Given how our world has changed, contactless payment methods and further online transactions will simply be the new way of things, regardless of whether it is convenient for all members of the public. With regards to the HSR, printing bus tickets simply became too cost-prohibitive, so we can appreciate efforts that phased them out slowly.
Given how our world has changed, contactless payment methods and further online transactions will simply be the new way of things, regardless of whether it is convenient for all members of the public.
For those with no problem loading huge balances onto Presto, using it is not something they have to frequently think about. But even then, no one is immune to all the burdens and glitches attached to managing various online accounts, and the resulting follow-up contact such new platforms inevitably necessitate.
As of Jan. 5, Metrolinx has cancelled service to the York University Keele campus and Keele Street stops for multiple Go Bus routes, including the highway 407 47 route, which stops at the McMaster Go station.
Instead, the bus routes will end at the highway 407 Toronto Transit Commission subway station.
In a written statement, Metrolinx spokesperson and senior media manager Anne Marie Aikins said the change is part of a larger plan to move service to the highway 407 stop, which was implemented as part of Toronto’s line one subway extension in December.
“By focusing direct access on Highway 407 and TTC Line 1 Subway, customers can expect improved service reliability in the Keele Street and York University area, which can incur additional 20 minutes of travel time in peak hours due to traffic congestion,” said Aikins.
[spacer height="20px"]Aikins added that the decision was made in collaboration with York University, which has plans to turn the old Go bus loop into a pedestrian area.
McMaster students will now need to leave the 47 bus at the highway 407 subway station and take the subway two stops south to the York University station to arrive at the old bus loop.
Students will also have to pay TTC fare if they transfer, though they will receive a $1.50 discount transferring between the Go bus and the subway if they use their Presto card to pay.
Some McMaster students who rely on the York University stop have expressed concern that their commutes will be negatively affected by the change.
The 47 Go route was the only Toronto-Hamilton route that stopped at the McMaster campus.
Second-year arts and sciences student Daniella Mikanovsky frequently takes the 47 route to York before getting picked up or transferring to a TTC bus. However, with the service change, Mikanovsky says she will now likely have to take a different GO bus route all together.
“I like the 47 because it has a stop on campus. The 40 stop is at [King Street West and Dundurn Street North], so I need to take the Hamilton Street Railway before [Go transit], but with the new change, the 40 drop off is closer to my house than the 47,” said Mikanovsky.
This may pose a problem as the HSR is not known as being a particularly reliable transit system. For instance, last year, a spike in driver absenteeism resulted in thousands of bus cancellations, missed pickups and underserviced routes.
[spacer height="20px"]York University students also see Metrolinx’s decision as problematic. For instance, the York Federation of Students’ Yu Ride petition, which calls for the return of GO bus service to the Keele campus, has already gathered over 17,000 signatures.
The Canadian Union of Public Employees 3903 at York University notes that the return of the stop would save users over $1,000 in additional transit fees. As such, the change may create serious financial pressure for users who cannot afford to pay extra transit fares.
McMaster University’s CUPE 3906 adds that Metrolinx’s decision also affects sessional faculty members who routinely teach at multiple campuses across the province.
“For a workforce that is already precarious, the additional three dollars per day in TTC costs and the additional 10 minutes in commuting time will make life even harder,” reads part of a statement from CUPE 3906.
In addition, CUPE 3906 suggests that universities continue to lobby the provincial government for direct and affordable inter-campus transit.
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