- Hub staff

At tonight's Owen Sound city council meeting, Councillor John Tamming provided notice that he would be bringing forward the following motion at the first meeting in January. As no other member of council was pepared to second the motion, it will not be going forward.

The motion raises many of the issues that will be discussed January 7 at a special meeting of council concerning transit.

"WHEREAS for 2022, conventional transit in Owen Sound is projected to cost the city, net of grants and fare revenues at least $1.25 million per year or 3% of an Owen Sound property tax bill;

AND WHEREAS prior to the onset of Covid-19, conventional transit ridership in Owen Sound had leveled out at approximately 14 riders per bus per hour;

AND WHEREAS “use it or lose it” is a perfectly legitimate and responsible city council budgetary principle by which to be guided;

AND WHEREAS people are simply not using our conventional transit in numbers which justify a transit system;

AND WHEREAS it is inconsistent with any climate change mitigation strategy to have largely empty buses pointlessly circling our city;

AND WHEREAS with taxi and future drive share apps, residents have options other than transit to get around;

AND WHEREAS other urban areas of Grey Bruce such as Saugeen Shores do not have transit systems and appear to be getting along fine without one;

AND WHEREAS it is essential to do something now to make our property taxes more competitive relative to our immediate municipal neighbours;

AND WHEREAS Owen Sound residents need a property tax break now and not in some distant future;

THEREFORE I HEREBY BRING NOTICE THAT I will move at the regular city council meeting on January 10, that the City of Owen terminate conventional transit as of March 31, 2022 and restrict its transit service to mobility transit only.