TORONTO - The chairman of the Toronto Transit Commission says the provincial government will have to provide substantial funding to get the TTC to commit to the PRESTO fare system.
Adam Giambrone is responding after Ontario's transportation minister called on Toronto to get on board with a new fare system for the area.
Kathleen Wynne says the PRESTO fare card initiative "absolutely" needs Toronto's transit.
But Giambrone says implementing an electronic fare collection system on the TTC would cost $400 million -- money that's not in the commission's budget.
He says unless the province can provide substantial funding, it would be impossible to proceed.
Giambrone says the commission hasn't committed to PRESTO but hasn't rejected it either, although it has issued a request for proposals on an open payment system.
The TTC is using PRESTO cards at nine stations in a pilot project, but it's also studying a separate system that allows commuters to use debit and credit cards.
Wynne says the smart card, launched in May, now has 10,000 users in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area and that shows residents want a single system.
The minister, who demonstrated PRESTO at Toronto's Union Station, says it will be difficult for politicians to explain why there would be two different cards.
Wynne says the demand for the PRESTO card shows people want to travel from Oakville, York Region or Durham into Toronto, and vice versa, without having to change cards or search for change.
The PRESTO card is expected to allow credit card, debit and cellphone payments by fall 2012 at the earliest.
The card, which is rolling out on GO Transit and eight municipal transit systems in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area, will be introduced in Ottawa by early 2012.
Wynne says eventually, she'd like to see the system used provincewide.
