Belleville is making its Mobility Transit Service a Core Municipal Service.
Council approved the move at its meeting on Monday ensuring an equal level of service across the entire municipality.
The City of Belleville has an obligation within the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act to provide mobility service which mirrors conventional transit services.
Ridership on Belleville Transit’s Mobility Bus has been steadily increasing since 2021 and is expected to continue to do so.
Ward 1 taxpayers have been paying for mobility service in their area and last year the mobility bus was expanded to Ward 2 with the extra funding coming from the city’s gas allocation for the first year.
That funding runs out at the end of April.
In order to continue the service, funding for the mobility bus will need to come from ridership revenues, funding from other levels of government and property tax levies.
To properly fund the service and give all residents equal access, Ward 2 ratepayers will see an average tax increase of $8.99 for the remainder of 2024 with a slight decrease for the Ward 1 tax base.
The Mobility Service currently has 1,443 active riders and while only about 65 of them are currently in Ward 2, Belleville Accessibility Advisory Committee Chair, Councillor Barb Enright Miller expects that number to grow.
“We hear in our Accessibility Committee meetings quite regularly about the need for expansion of service, particularly in the rural section and as we have 65 residents that we know are using it now, we’re anticipating that may even double, and again, as our population ages … “
Ward 2 councillor and Transit Advisory Committee Chair Kathryn Brown says the adoption of the Transit Belleville Transit Multi-Year Accessibility Plan, which was also approved at Monday’s meeting, shows the importance of mobility transit.
She notes she and fellow Ward 2 Councillor Paul Carr will continue to promote the service’s availability to their constituents.
Three new buses have also been added to the Mobility Transit Fleet and while this does not result in an increase in the number of mobility buses in use at any given time, it does allow for spare buses to be available when there are breakdowns or maintenance required.
