Finance Minister Bill Morneau will not revisit decision to kill transit tax credit

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      Justin Trudeau's Liberal government was elected after promising to spend billions on transit infrastructure.

      But Finance Minister Bill Morneau has since faced a storm of criticism for killing a tax credit for Canadians who buy monthly or weekly transit passes.

      Today on CTV Question Period, Morneau told host Evan Solomon that he will not revisit the decision, which was announced in last week's federal budget.

      When Solomon asked Morneau, a former CEO, how much a monthly pass costs in Toronto and Ottawa, the finance minister sidestepped the question.

      In Metro Vancouver, an adult one-zone monthly transit pass costs $91. For adults, a two-zone monthly pass costs $124 and a three-zone pass costs $170.

      It means that adult one-zone pass holders in Metro Vancouver will lose $163.28 per year as a result of Morneau's decision. 

      Metro Vancouver adult two-zone pass holders will lose $223.20 annually; adult three-zone pass holders will lose $306.

      In 2006, the Conservative government introduced a 15 percent tax credit for weekly and monthly passes.

      This came after previous Liberal governments spurned requests for years from the Canadian Urban Transit Association and environmentalists to introduce this incentive.

      "Canadians are concerned about traffic congestion and the harmful greenhouse gas emissions that come with it. Increasing the use of public transit, including buses, subways, commuter trains and ferries, will help ease traffic congestion in our urban areas and reduce air pollution that dirties our air and affects our health," the website transitpass.ca states. "The tax credit for public transit makes public transit more affordable for Canadians and provides clean air in our communities."

      Between 2007 and 2013, the cost of a three-zone transit pass in Metro Vancouver rose by $480 per year.

      The elimination of the transit tax credit will save the federal treasury approximately $170 million per year.

      Morneau told Solomon today that low-income Canadians who use the transit system don't receive the tax credit if they're already not paying tax.

      Morneau also claimed that the tax credit is not stimulating greater ridership.

      In Metro Vancouver, however, transit ridership has risen sharply, particularly since the opening of the Canada Line in 2009.

      Earlier this year, TransLink reported a record number of riders in 2016 with 384.8 million boardings.

      That was 4.5 percent above the 2015 ridership figure.

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