All Medicine Hat citizens deserve a user-friendly transit system

By Letter to the Editor on September 29, 2017.

As election day approaches, I would like to remind the people of Medicine Hat that our city council took it upon themselves to change our transit system without any regard or respect for our seniors, disabled, people who cannot afford cars and those who choose to ride transit to reduce their carbon footprint and be green.

The new transit system has left people without transportation to employment, social engagements, church and other day to day activities. If you live on the S.E. Hill, as I do, as well as in other areas, there is no transit on weekends. How do people get to their jobs? How do our seniors get the mall to meet friends? A cost-saving measure would possibly be to sell off several of the large buses and use smaller buses on the less utilized routes as they do in Calgary for outlying communities.

The council has now decided to return to the old transit system but our current mayor Ted Clugston as well as councillors Bill Cocks and Jamie McIntosh voted against changing it back.

The remainder of council at least were willing to admit the change was a mistake, albeit they require three months to return to the old system. So for three more months people will have issues getting to work, meeting friends, getting to medical appointments, etc.

All taxpaying citizens of Medicine Hat deserve a user-friendly transit system whether they use it or not; that is what makes us a city. Just as a tax-paying citizen I pay educational taxes even though I do not have children.

Clugston has said he wants to end homelessness in Medicine Hat and then takes away people’s ability to get to work.

On election day remember that Clugston, Cocks and McIntosh have no interest in our seniors, disabled and those unable to afford motor vehicles. For our future, remember the people that have been left without transportation may be your parents or even you one day.

Kristina Swinford

Medicine Hat

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