To understand why our province lacked passenger buses on urban transit, we asked candidates in last fall's provincial election if public transportation for the province was on their agenda, mentioning in this connection such pertinent facts as that 24% of the Island's adults do not drive automobiles. The replies indicated that none of them had given thought to public transportation. A few did admit there was a problem for some folks getting around, but cautioned that any public transportation system "must pay its own way".

Anyone who thinks that "public transportation must pay its own way", just is not well informed on the subject. Self-supporting public transportation is no more attainable than self-supporting roads, streets, hospitals, public schools, sewers, police or fire departments, or any other public service. There is no public transportation system on the planet that is not subsidized by government. (Imagine being told that, because "the schools must pay for themselves", we may either pay tuition or teach our children at home.)

Back to the Statistics Canada report. In 1993 in Canada as a whole, the total revenue of all urban transit systems was $3.5 billion. Total subsidies amounted to almost $2 billion, or 57% of total revenue. Looking at the other Atlantic provinces, we find that Newfoundland had $10.6 million in transit revenues, of which subsidies amounted to $6.4 million, or 60% of total revenue. For Nova Scotia, the figure was 47% and for New Brunswick, 48%. We should point out that the Maritimes are far from being the most generous provinces with respect to aiding public transport.

What makes the absence of public transportation here even more curious is the circumstance that our Island's demographics favour it. Not only is PEI the most densely populated province with an average of 65 persons per square mile, but it is considerably urban with about 80 thousand people concentrated in the central part of the island, within 15 miles of Charlottetown or Summerside.

The lack of public transportation devastates the province socially and economically. Health and social service agencies, as well as service groups assisting the disabled and disadvantaged, the elderly, etc., are constantly struggling to connect clients, not only with services, but with their communities. And it is not only these who suffer. Just consider that among the Island population of 136,000, only 74 thousand have drivers' licenses. In the absence of other forms of transportation, every driver finds him/herself frequently carrying others to doctors, beauty parlours, supermarkets, little league games, etc. In addition, rural residents who become unable to drive must sell their homes and leave their neighbours to move to an urban area within easy reach of shopping and service; and volunteer groups and service clubs must operate special vehicles.

By shirking the responsibility to provide public transportation, the province taxes Islanders with unpaid, often unwanted or inconvenient driving work, and allows charitable contributions to substitute for the public purse. In making the automobile essential, the province requires us to use the most expensive, wasteful, and polluting form of transportation. The high cost of car operation grossly distorts the Island economy. (A small, relatively inexpensive car, such as the Ford Escort LX, costs an average of over $9 thousand a year to operate in Canada.) We are at the low-end of the income scale and yet spend more on transportation per capita than the rest of Canada. Taking the $9 thousand a year figure for a small car, and multiplying it by 70 thousand, the number of autos plus half the pick-up trucks on the Island, amounts to $630 million a year spent on private car transportation. This is almost 32% of the gross provincial product. It is a far higher percentage than that in any other province of Canada, and very likely, any other place in the world.

Here are some of the ways PEI will benefit economically from public transportation:
1. Increased retail trade. Studies show above average retail growth where good public transport is introduced instead of increased parking provision.
2. Increased employment opportunities. Access to employment by those who lack a car, also entry level employment, will not have to include the cost of running a car. And, of course, a transportation system will itself create employment, directly and indirectly.
3. Increased personal discretionary income. Each car, eliminated as a result of substitution of public transport, will give a family at least $8 thousand a year to save or spend on other things.
4. Increased real estate values. Properties with good access to public transportation are worth more.
5. Municipal savings. In so far as traffic in downtown centers is reduced, there will be less need to construct multi-storey parking garages. A 200 car garage costs a municipality about $500,000 annually in subsidies.
6. Provincial savings. Less expensive transportation for the disadvantaged, who require health adn social services; reduction in health expenditures resulting from collisions, pollution, isolation and impaired driving.

These economic benefits, together with social and health benefits, are the reason that governments subsidize public transportation. Our provincial government, which has been long subsidizing the private car, borrowing about $30 million annually to pay for road construction (a major element of our provincial debt), could justify investment in public transport on the basis of economic development alone. And it could easily fund a transportation system through gasoline and diesel fuel taxes, with every penny increase yielding $2.26 million. At 13 cents/liter, our present fuel tax is far from excessive. In Newfoundland, the tax is 16.5 cents.

Bringing public transportation to PEI will require sufficient vehicles so that there will be no more than one hour headway between vehicles; support, not only of capital expenditures, but of a fare structure that will encourage ridership; and funding an extensive publicity campaign to promote the service and educate the public.

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