Commissioner Martin Crilly recently confirmed that TransLink will hike fares by a whopping 12 percent in 2013.

TransLink likely doesn’t care that most Surrey residents take exception to a 12 percent fare hike on top of what are already some of the highest per-kilometre fares in the country.

Combine fare increases with a recently-announced two-cents-per-litre gas tax, tolls on the Golden Ears, Port Mann, and Pattullo bridges upwards of $3 each way, and inadequate public transit service, and it’s clear Surrey is paying more and getting less. Every transportation option for residents south of the Fraser is becoming less affordable.

Commuters in Surrey are fed up with being a have-not city when it comes to public transit. Folks in Surrey can’t help but lose hope that major service upgrades like light rail transit and rapid bus service will be implemented anytime soon.

The Tri-Cities have been clamouring for the Evergreen Line for more than 20 years, and TransLink still has difficulty getting things on track. Many folks in Surrey are skeptical that their rapid transit projects will remain at the top of the queue when Vancouver starts to lobby for an extension of the Millennium Line along Broadway out to UBC.

As it stands, it is still significantly more convenient to drive in Surrey for those residents who can afford to do so. At this rate, driving will be more convenient and reliable for a long time to come.

It is becoming more and more clear that the TransLink board’s current governance structure is not working for Surrey. There are many problems with how the privatized, unelected TransLink board is structured.

Its funding options are limited to gas taxes, property taxes, fare hikes, some ad revenue, and leveraging any increases in property value to developments that are in close proximity to newly-built SkyTrain stations. TransLink needs a real commitment to consistent, reliable funding from the provincial government.

Its decision-making process—behind closed doors by unelected members who are not democratically accountable to taxpayers—is deeply flawed. The current board decides on regional priorities, proposes a package of improvements with the accompanying price tag, and the region’s mayors are simply allowed to approve, or not approve, the proposed package without any opportunity to discuss specific line-items.

What we need is a complete overhaul of TransLink’s governance structure.

With TransLink back in public hands, our locally elected officials could make the tough decisions like how to finance new capital projects and TransLink’s ongoing operation.

It is unlikely an elected board would raise fares by 12 percent, because they would realize the severe impact that would have on the pocketbooks of their constituents. It is just as unlikely an elected board would spend $170 million on fare-gate turnstiles and a smart card system when fare evasion likely only amounts to about $6 million a year. And a public TransLink board would ensure that citizens and elected officials had a say in where the money was spent.

The current system is broken. Local politicians should call on the province to return the governance of TransLink to public hands.

Stephanie Ryan is a candidate for city council with the Surrey Civic Coalition.