By expanding and improving provincial transit, Ontario could help students access affordable housing beyond campus limits and commute from home more easily

As Ontario’s housing crisis worsens, McMaster students are feeling the effects of skyrocketing rents and a lack of on-campus housing. Though it won't solve the housing crisis, reliable and fast public transit could mitigate the increasing demand for student housing by making commuting more feasible.

Transportation isn’t always considered when discussing solutions to the housing crisis, but it could play plays a crucial role for students. The ability to live in more affordable areas away from campus or with their parents depends on easy access to public both fast and reliable transit.

By improving and expanding services like GO Transit along with municipal transit such as the Hamilton Street Railway, Ontario could open up more affordable housing opportunities for students without forcing them to sacrifice convenience or accessibility. With better transit making longer commutes more feasible, students wouldn’t be as limited to a shrinking pool of expensive rentals near campus.

Currently, many McMaster students face a tough choice: either struggle with high rents on or near campus or commute long distances to find affordable housing. With transit that pails in comparison to that of many other countries in terms of both reliability and travel time, students either have to bite the bullet of paying high rent or make long and tiring commutes every day.

The lack of affordable housing close to McMaster is part of a larger trend. A report from the Canadian Alliance of Student Associations found that nearly half of all Canadian students struggle to find affordable housing. For McMaster students, this statistic is all too real.

Other cities have already begun to recognize the link between transportation and empowering housing. According to the University of British Columbia Alma Mater Society, in 2023, 33% of UBC students had commutes exceeding one hour.

The SkyTrain extension project to the University of British Columbia, currently under construction, aims to make getting to the university from far out in the city easier and faster. By linking the university directly to Vancouver’s rapid transit network, the extension could make more distant commutes easier and more feasible, increasing the options of where students can live and making commuting less difficult.

The benefits of expanding public transit go beyond just providing students with more affordable living options. Investing in transit infrastructure strengthens communities, fosters economic growth, and reduces traffic congestion.

For Hamilton, a more connected transit system would improve the quality of life for all residents, not just students. As Ontario plans for the future of its transit networks, the needs of students must be a part of the conversation.

Of course improving transit will not itself solve the housing crisis. At the end of the day, solving the housing crisis requires building more affordable housing. But as construction takes time, making commuting a more feasible and easy option for a great number of students now could reduce the student demand on the local housing market in the short term.

Transit riders in the GTA and those who use GO transit will only pay once when transferring between services, starting Feb. 26

On Feb. 26, the Ontario government’s new One Fare program will come into effect. Under the new program, transit riders of transit agencies in in the GTA will be able to transfer for free between services. 

The One Fare program is one of many transit developments the Ontario government is pushing forward as part of the Greater Golden Horseshoe Transportation Plan. The Greater Golden Horseshoe refers to a large and densely populated portion of southern Ontario ranging from Peterborough to the Niagara Region, surrounding Lake Ontario.

The program is currently set to include the Toronto Transit Commission, GO Transit, York Region Transit, Durham Region Transit, Missisauga’s transit system and Brampton Transit.

Free transfers involving local transit agencies will be valid for a period of two hours after the first trip begins. In this case, the second component of the trip becomes free of cost.

Transfers from GO Transit to another participating transit service will be valid for three hours. In this case, only the local transit component of the trip is covered. 

Riders transferring between services will automatically receive their discount when they use the same PRESTO, credit or debit card to tap on and off of different services. 

The program will see Metrolinx reimburse local transit agencies to account for their lost revenue. According to Associate Minister of Transportation Vijay Thanigasalam, the program will cost the province about $117 million each year. 

In light of this cost, the government hopes that the improved service will attract more people to make use of public transit to move across the GTA. Premier Doug Ford also stated at a press conference on Feb. 5 at Downsview Park Go station that the program will save regular transit users as much as $1,600 annually. 

Depending on the success of the current program, the government is considering expanding the One-Fare program to include more local transit agencies across the province.

“Our goal is to go to the next phase, to talk to and have dialogue with other municipalities beyond the GTA corridor so that we can bring the one-fare program into other regions,” stated Thanigasalam at the Downsview Park Go station.

Our goal is to go to the next phase, to talk to and have dialogue with other municipalities beyond the GTA corridor so that we can bring the one-fare program into other regions

Vijay Thanigasalam, associate minister of transportation, Government of Ontario

Many McMaster University students who commute from participating areas and use local transit services to get to the GO bus will also benefit from the program. According to the most recent numbers from McMaster, there are about 3,000 GO bus rides each week Monday to Thursday and about 4,500 every Friday. Students who commute to a GO Bus stop with a local transit agency in the GTA will save the cost of the local transit component of the trip.

Other developments soon to be under works are the construction of new and expansion of existing subway lines in the GTA. The plan also includes having two-way, all-day GO train service every 15 minutes between major cities in the Greater Golden Horseshoe by 2031. 

More information about the One Fare program can be found on Metrolinx’s website. 

J.J. Bardoel

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Compass Information Centre has recently announced that bus route Northlink 8 Guelph–Hamilton, frequently used by students, will cease to operate on Friday, Dec. 20, 2013.

Aboutown had been running the route in affiliation with Compass since August 2010, however due to the influx of fuel and insurance costs and decreasing presence for inter-city operations, the route was forced to be pulled. “We receive no subsidization from any government source for inter-city and mass transits,” said Jeff Sich, Northlink Coordinator.

Any signage regarding the route has quickly been removed at Compass in the hopes that students will help inform the community. “The timing is not good for the students, because they are all on exams obviously,” said Debbie Good, Compass Manager. “We just want to make sure that students are not expecting that service to be there.”

Along with the Guelph-Hamilton route, all other inter-city routes through Aboutown will also cease on the same day. Students still looking for transportation in the area will still be able to use GO Transit and Greyhounds, which both run at comparable prices to the Aboutown route.

“We have received a couple of emails regarding the cancellation that was announced on Friday, Dec. 13, 2013,” said Sich. “We anticipate more in the New Year. All are disappointed with the announcement.”

Full refunds for customers who purchased tickets for future use will be available at Compass until Jan. 17, 2014.

In a press conference on Friday May 31 at the downtown Hamilton GO station, Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure Glen Murray announced plans for a new GO station to be built on James Street North.

Under the boiling afternoon sun, Murray, joined by local MPP Ted McMeekin, Hamilton Mayor Bob Bratina and other government officials, outlined the need surrounding transportation infrastructure investment and development, and the importance of the project for Hamilton.

The station will be constructed nearby the historic Liuna Station and include multi-level parking with 300 spaces, new bus bays, a pick-up and drop-off zone and pedestrian walkways. The station’s main point of service will be to add two more train trips in the morning and afternoon to Toronto on the Lakeshore line, every day of the week. The current GO station on Hunter Street near St. Joseph's Hospital will continue to operate and will not be affected by the addition of the James North station.

The announcement follows recent buzz about continuing LRT (Light Rapid Transit) talks and what Metrolinx and the Ontario Government’s “Big Move” strategy means for Hamilton. While evading direct discussion of LRT in Hamilton, Murray did stress the need to catch Hamilton up with other cities in terms of transportation. Specifically, Murray outlined the need to do so in order to retain McMaster graduates.

“Young people who graduate from McMaster look around and see no LRT, they see limited GO service, they don’t see subways in this region, and they look to Chicago and they look to New York… [where] they see good governance [with transportation],” Murray said.

While a final budget and an exact time frame are still in the works, the station is set to begin construction in early 2014 and be completed by 2015. This schedule is coordinated to align with the Pan/Parapan Am Games’ arrival in Hamilton during the summer of 2015, although the station will continue operations after the Games are done.