By Kira Lynn Ferderber, Ottawa Citizen, June 30, 2017
I love Ottawa. I was born and raised here, and I love showing off my city to visitors from all over. I’m inspired by the powerful activism and art I see in Ottawa every day.
I’ve had the privilege of working with many of our great music festivals over the past several years as a performer, and also as an educator specializing in safety at big events. I teach sexual violence prevention and anti-racist bystander intervention, hoping to make our public parties and city streets as welcoming and as safe as possible for everyone.
(...) My vision for Ottawa includes public transportation without a pay-per-use fee system. No bus passes, no bus tickets, no counting change, no tapping a card, no proof-of-purchase receipt, no transfers. Currently, OC Transpo is paid for in part through fares, but also by property taxes. It’s up to us to decide which city services are paid for in whole or in part with user fees, and how much of the cost comes out of the city budget. Roads aren’t pay-per-use for those in cars, and it would be possible for bus use to work the same way.
http://ottawacitizen.com/opinion/columnists/capital-wishlist-lets-make-public-transit-free-says-kira-lynn-ferderber