There's nearly $7,500 worth of bus tickets for low-income Hamiltonians on the line, but some councillors say they still won't participate in Environment Hamilton's campaign to get them to ride the bus.
The Throw Council on the Bus campaign is designed to get Hamilton's 15 councillors and the mayor to ride the bus for five days over a two-month period to give them a better idea of the city's transit issues.
If councillors ride the bus, Environment Hamilton will donate the pledged money to bus tickets for low-income people. If councillors don't ride the bus, the money won't be collected.
'If he really is confused about why we didn't 'ask first' then he's missing the point of the campaign.'- Ned Nolan, Environment Hamilton
But the two councillors who have the most pledges – Coun. Chad Collins of Ward 5 and Coun. Terry Whitehead of Ward 8 – still haven't agreed to take the challenge. Both cited family commitments that mean they need their cars.
Collins, for whom $1,863.94 has been pledged so far, says he might do the challenge this summer when his children aren't in school. But he hasn't decided yet.
He knows there's money on the line, "same as with the other councillors. There's probably a lot of money on the line for everyone collectively. I would agree."
But it's a political campaign designed to force their hands, he said. And he knows what HSR is like.
"I spent half of my life on the bus," he said. "I don't think I need to go today to understand what's going on with HSR."
Collins successfully led the charge to dismantle a two-kilometre bus lane along King Street downtown, saying he heard during the October election that his Ward 5 residents didn't want it. He comes second to Coun. Terry Whitehead of Ward 8 in the number of pledges raised.
"The campaign is symbolic in light of what went on over the bus lane," Collins said. "There was certainly hurt feelings over many corners of it. I've been on the opposite side of the fence in political decisions that didn't go my way and I understand the pains. I look at it in that context."
By not doing the challenge, councillors are thumbing their nose at a good cause, an Environment Hamilton rep says.
"It would be a real shame for a councillor to say 'no thanks' to hundreds (or in some cases, thousands) of dollars towards a good cause," said Ned Nolan, an Environment Hamilton board member.
Whitehead has wondered publicly why Environment Hamilton would involve councillors in a campaign without checking with them first. Nolan says that's disingenuous.
"If he really is confused about why we didn't 'ask first' then he's missing the point of the campaign," he said.
The campaign is based on the premise that councillors would prefer not to take the bus to work, he said. This is meant to "gently nudge" them out of their comfort zone.
Many other councillors haven't pledged to take the bus either. Coun. Tom Jackson of Ward 6, for example, says his schedule is full. Couns. Judi Partridge and Robert Pasuta cite the lack of transit in Flamborough.
'Still confident' they'll do it
Nolan said he's "still confident that most councillors will participate."
"We have been in touch with all councillors about the campaign and we've discussed the campaign in detail with a number of councillors who have expressed a willingness to participate," he said.
"We have also invited councillors to suggest specific charities or organizations in the community where they'd like to see the donations go. In this regard, we've only heard back from two."
Transit has been a tense issue at city hall this year. In addition to the bus lane vote, new transit head David Dixon says the city needs $302 million over 10 years to fix and grow HSR. Councillors will vote in April to include $6 million of that in the 2015 budget.
Mayor Fred Eisenberger also met with Premier Katheen Wynne earlier this month. Wynne pledged full capital funding for light rail transit, Eisenberger said, and the city should hear about an amount and timing over the next two months. Transit riders have also formed a union.
'Throw the pledges over to my side'
Coun. Jason Farr is tweeting about the challenge through the hashtag #BusaMove. But he represents Ward 2, where city hall is located, so it's easy for him, he said.
"I just thought it was such a great way to get bus tickets into people's hands," he said. "I can also understand and appreciate that it may not be something that works with respect to some of my colleagues."
For those who want their pledge money to be collected, Farr suggests they "throw the pledges over to my side."
He took the B line to McMaster University every day when he was a student, he said.
"Overcrowding was an issue then, and some things have not changed."
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