City staff recommend Brampton’s free youth transit and recreation passes return this summer

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Published February 22, 2023 at 2:46 pm

Free snacks and giveaways for Brampton Transit's Customer Appreciation Week

City staff have recommended continuing Brampton’s pilot program to offer free youth passes for transit and recreational programs in the city.

The program, which offered 2,000 Explore Brampton Youth Passes in 2022 to kids between 12 and 15 years old, is recommended to return this summer.

The passes allowed holders to ride transit and attend city recreation programs free of charge during summer months.

Recreation programs included access to swimming pools, badminton and basketball courts, pick up hockey, pickleball, and fitness centres.

“Brampton is one of the youngest cities in Canada with more than 130,000 youth within the ages of 14 and 29. Many youth travel using public transit, especially those attending high school and post-secondary institutions,” says a report that went to Brampton city council today (Feb. 22).

“It is anticipated that the pilot program will continue to raise awareness of what is available to youth through Brampton Recreation and get them comfortable using public transit.”

The recommendation is to continue the pilot program for another year, with another 2,000 passes up for grabs.

According to the report, the value of the Explore Brampton Youth Pass would be $428,000, equivalent to two youth monthly passes ($107/month) for 2,000 pass holders.

City staff are expected to continue monitoring youth ridership and revenue trending over the course of the program, including any data provided in a user survey at the end of the program.

If the program is approved to return this year, the passes would be effective for a roughly two-month period from July 1, 2023 to September 4, 2023.

More updates are expected as we get closer to summer.

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