In an attempt to gain ridership increase, fares on Toronto’s new downtown-to-airport shuttle will be cut by more than half, the Toronto Star reported today. Riders who use a Presto fare card will see prices drop from $19.00 to $9.00 per trip, while riders without the card will pay only $12.00 down from $27.50.

Launched in June 2015, the new Union Pearson Express service operates between Toronto Union Station and Pearson Airport. Private vendor Metrolinx says they need time to reach ridership projects of  7,000 riders a day to break even. Meanwhile, most of the heavily subsidized trains roll nearly empty, only drawing about 2,000 riders a day. A fleet of 18 Nippon Sharyo diesel multiple unit (DMU) cars make up the UPX roster in three-car and two-car sets, running on GO Transit’s Kitchener route and a newly constructed spur to the airport.

—Passenger Train Journal