Please consider supporting 'tax free employer paid transit'. Employers have long provide parking without charge for employees, and this benefit is not taxed for the employee. This will level the field for transit passes. Exerpt from VTPI....
There is now a promising opportunity to have this policy established in Canada’s tax code, and your support for this provision could be very influential. I encourage you to send a letter to Federal Finance Minister Jim Flaherty and Federal Minister of Transport Lawrence Cannon. Templates are posted at www.vtpi.org/TT_letter.htm (HTM format) and www.vtpi.org/TT_letter.doc (MS Word format).
BACKGROUND
Research by myself and others indicates that transit benefits significantly increase transit ridership and provide large net benefits (see www.vtpi.org/tdm/tdm8.htm ). Federal government sponsored research indicates that this policy is very cost effective overall (IBI, 1999, Tax Exempt Status For Employer-Provided Transit Benefits, Transportation Issue Table, National Climate Change Process and Transport Canada (www.tc.gc.ca/programs/environment/climatechange/subgroups1/passenger_urban/study5/exec_summary/english/transitpass.htm ). In fact, it ranked as the most cost-effective transport emission reduction strategy of dozens evaluated (Transportation Climate Change Table, 1999,
Transportation and Climate Change: Options for Action, Transport Canada).
Regards,
Gosse Van Oosten
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