A successful ten months for the city’s KamPASS affordable transit pilot program since it launched in September 2019.

“We had 332 clients access KamPASS with no dropouts. These individuals accounted for over 24,000 rides from September 2019 to July of this year,” Acting Social and Community Development Supervisor Ty Helgason said.

Launched as a pilot project, KamPASS clients are able to buy a bus pass for $7.25 a month, a discount of 85 per cent from the regular monthly pass cost of $50. Helgason says it provides affordable bus passes for Kamloops residents with a limited income.

“The program encourages and normalizes transit ridership. KamPass has lowered the cost barrier for eligible residents to access transportation, which in turn allows them to access work, education, medical services, recreation and other important services like life skills development or volunteerism opportunities,” Helgason told council on Tuesday.

“As such, staff are recommending that council authorize staff to continue to provide the KamPASS affordable public transportation option to qualified individuals, who are not eligible for provincial assistance towards transportation costs.”

Helgason says the KamPASS program leverages the existing Affordable Recreation for Community Health (ARCH) application process, with potential users applying through one of the many social agencies in the city. These organizations screen the applications to make sure people are eligible, before the applications are sent to the city where people are enrolled in one or both programs.

Helgason says the city has budgeted for up to 1,000 such bus passes, but he doesn’t anticipate that the uptake would get to that level.

“If we got close to it, we would have to have a discussion around it,” he said.