Province ends funding for Halifax student bus pass program

CITYnews halifax / By Mark Hodgins

The provincial government has told Halifax it will no longer be supporting a pilot project that saw some students in the municipality get free transit passes.

The transit pass pilot program launched in 2021, and has been giving bus passes to students in grades 7 to 12.

The partnership between the province and the municipality comes included a $1.2 million contribution from the provincial govenrnment and $600,000 from Halifax.

“From our perspective, it would be very difficult for us to continue without the provincial funding,” councillor Sam Austin told CityNews Halifax. “Council will have to take a look at that, but I imagine it will be the end of the program.”

Education Minister Brendan Maguire told reporters on Wednesday that some funding would be redirected to still provide bus passes to the most vulnerable.

“Would we like to be able to give every single kid a bus pass? Obviously,” Maguire said. “But with the limited resources we had, we have to make sure the people who need it the most, people in the core needs get it.”

It’s unclear what the future now holds for the pilot program. Austin said council will likely try to have a discussion about this news during the current budget discussions, but questions remain around how long the program will last.

Austin said the province’s letter only said the program was being discontinued for the next fiscal year.

“What that means in terms of, is there an ability to change the program or bring it back, does it continue after April 1,” Austin offered. “I would hope that we would at least see it out until September to avoid disruptions in the current school year. Those are choices with the government.”

The councillor said the program had several benefits, including reducing traffic congestion with fewer students needing a drive to school, while also fostering independence for students who wanted to take part in after-school activities or jobs.