The city is purchasing two new buses for Timmins Transit at a total of $1,090,674. However, thanks to funds from the federal government the city will likely be on the hook for only half that amount, and that amount is likely to be covered by provincial funds.
Director of Community and Development Services Mark Jensen explained that due to the availability of the new Public Transit Infrastructure Fund (PTIF) which has been made available this year, the city is accelerating the purchase of a new bus.
"We're following our ten-year capital plan for bus replacement. We are accelerating the purchase of one bus this year, and we'll knock one off next year, just because we want to take full advantage of this funding opportunity that may or may not be here next year," said Jensen.
The agreement, for two 40-foot low-floor buses, is with Nova Bus, a Canadian manufacturer based in Saint-Eustache, Quebec, in suburban Montreal.
"In short, we were supposed to only acquire one this year, but we're going for two because the gas tax funding on the other side will cover the second bus."
In 2014 city council approved the continuation of a five year purchase agreement with Nova Bus, although it is subject to annual council approval before formally moving ahead with purchases.
Jensen said that the city will be able to rid themselves of the last two older, 1998 model Orion buses. They are considered obsolete, and do not have adequate accessibility for wheelchairs and strollers.
"We're almost at a homogenous fleet now in terms of manufacturer, which is fantastic. We have ongoing issues with finding replacement parts for those buses, which means the buses are offline for a longer period of time, which is never a good thing when you're trying to move people around the city," he said.
Timmins Transit's 5-year planJensen requested council approval as soon as possible, citing the long wait for delivery, and the fact that PTIF projects must be in the works by the end of March.
"It does take upwards of a year, or even more. Once you place the order formally, it takes 12 to 14 months to actually receive the bus, so we would prefer that this be approved this evening."
Councillor Mike Doody said that one of the big successes of AMO (Association of Municipalities of Ontario) is the gas tax, and the ability of cities to purchase newer transit buses. He asked Jensen for the number of buses that Timmins has been able to acquire through the fund.
"Oh jeeze, that's a tough one. I can tell you that we used to have 34 buses. We're down to about 19 now. I think we've replaced probably between eight and ten buses now," replied Jensen.
Doody asked how much a transit bus currently costs.
"They're usually around the half million dollar mark, depending on what you want for accessories," said Jensen.
Doody emphasized that Timmins has 'benefited bigtime' from the gas tax.
When it was time for the vote, there was no opposition.
