A protest rally is planned for outside Windsor City Hall over proposed cuts to Transit Windsor.
The rally will be held at 11:30 a.m. Monday outside City Hall as the issue of cuts to the city's bus service is debated inside by the mayor and city council.
Activate Transit Windsor Essex is organizing the rally but will also be joined by members of the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 616, which represents 300 Transit Windsor employees.
Activate Transit Windsor Essex co-organizer, Nate Hope says they hope council hears them.
"The irresponsible treatment of riders has been unacceptable. We want to show that we're here and united and that we need to see changes happen." he says.
The city's proposed 2025 budget includes $1.4 million in service cuts to Transit Windsor, including the elimination of the regular tunnel bus and special events bus that runs between Windsor and Detroit.
There's also a proposal to eliminate school extras, transit busses that provide service to students at Vincent Massey and Riverside Secondary Schools and Holy Names and St. Joseph's Catholic High Schools.
The extras are designed to take pressure off regular routes during the school year.
The proposed budget also includes a 3.2 per cent fare hike, set to take effect on April 1, 2025.
Hope says they need to see changes happen.
"We're not a group that can be ignored. We're people who are concerned about transit. We're people that go to work. We're people that go to appointments. We're going to work together to make sure that transit is run responsibly," he says.
Hope says they hope people in the community will come out to the rally.
"Everyone can use the bus. The bus is there for everyone to use in the city. If you don't have a car, you can take the bus. If you have a car, you can take the bus to go somewhere. Come on out and join us. Show support. We're going to work together to make a difference in the city," he says.
Council will discuss the proposed budget during a special public meeting at 12 p.m. on Monday, Jan. 27.