Staff Report #6
November 27, 2024
To All Commissioners
Re: Financial Update – Conventional Transit Services – Operating Budget – October 31, 2024
Recommendation
That the report be NOTED and FILED.
Background
Set out in the table below is the Statement of Operations for Conventional Transit Services for the ten-month period ending October 31, 2024. The statement sets out actual to budget performance for the period.
London Transit Commission Statement of Operations – Conventional Transit Services Ten Months Ending October 31, 2024 (000’s omitted)
| Description | Actual | Budget | Amount Better (Worse) | Percent Better (Worse) | |
| Revenue | |||||
| Transportation | $ 32,363.5 | $ 32,319.9 | $ 43.6 | 0 .1 % | |
| Operating | 2,506.1 | 1,668.6 | 837.5 | 50.2 % | |
| Transfers from reserves | 1,056.6 | 1,337.1 | (280.5) | (21.0)% | |
| Province-provincial gas tax | 8,743.5 | 9,333.4 | (589.9) | (6.3)% | |
| City of London | 35,065.3 | 35,065.3 | – | 0.0 % | |
| Total revenue | 79,735.1 | 79,724.3 | 10.8 | 0.0 % | |
| Expenditure | |||||
| Personnel cost | 52,154.1 | 52,803.2 | 649.1 | 1.2 % | |
| Direct bus maintenance | 7,705.2 | 7,569.7 | (135.5) | (1.8)% | |
| Fuel | 7,757.7 | 8,794.2 | 1,036.5 | 11.8 % | |
| Facility costs | 2,519.4 | 2,758.2 | 238.8 | 8.7 % | |
| Insurance | 3,990.1 | 4,329.3 | 339.2 | 7.8 % | |
| Contribution to reserves | 1,075.6 | 624.0 | (451.6) | (72.4)% | |
| All other material expense | 3,016.9 | 2,845.7 | (171.2) | (6.0)% | |
| Total expenditure | 78,219.1 | 79,724.3 | 1,505.2 | 1.9 % | |
| Net favourable/(unfavourable) | $ 1,516.0 | $ – | $ 1,516.0 | 1.9 % | |
As indicated in the above table, the conventional service has a net favourable operating budget performance to-date of 1.9% or $1,516,000. An explanation of the variances is set out below.
Revenue
- favourable operating revenues of $837,500 due mainly to higher interest income earned, noting $451,600 relates to interest earned on reserve funds and is highlighted below as an unfavourable contribution to reserves;
- unfavourable transfers from reserves of $280,500 as the required contribution to cover insurance claims is $280,500 less than budgeted, noting this decrease is offset below within the favourable insurance cost; and
- a reduction in projected provincial gas tax requirements at this time, noting a full analysis of reserves and reserve funds, including provincial gas tax, will be completed at year end.
Expenditures
- favourable personnel costs of $649,100 due primarily to the timing of filling vacant positions;
- favourable fuel costs of $1,036,500 due mainly to continued lower than budgeted diesel fuel prices;
- favourable facility costs of $238,800 due mainly to lower than budgeted utility costs (hydro, natural gas and water);
- favourable insurance costs of $339,200 due to lower than budgeted claim costs ($280,500) and a favourable 2024-2025 insurance program renewal ($58,800); and
- unfavourable contributions to reserves of $451,600 due to the increase in interest income earned on reserves, noted above in operating revenue.
Ridership
The table below sets out actual to budget ridership performance as well as a comparison to the same period in the previous year.
Ridership Performance – Actual vs. Budget Ten Months Ending October 31, 2024 (000’s omitted)
| Description | Actual | Budget | Variance | % Variance | 2023 Actual | % Variance |
| Total Passengers (000’s) | 16,080.3 | 15,874.2 | 206.1 | 1.3 % | 15,066.5 | 6.7 % |
| Average Fare | $ 2.013 | $ 2.040 | $ (0.027) | (1.3)% | $ 1.944 | 3.6 % |
| Revenue Service Hours | 589.4 | 591.1 | (1.7) | (0.3)% | 565.0 | 4.3 % |
| Rides/Rev Service Hour | 27.3 | 26.9 | 0.4 | 1.6 % | 26.7 | 2.3 % |
Administration will continue to monitor the operating budget performance, including ridership, on a monthly basis.
Recommended by:
Mike Gregor, Director of Finance
Concurred in by:
Kelly S. Paleczny, General Manager