On Demand - Privacy policy

The Regional Municipality of Durham, through Durham Region Transit (“DRT”), gathers various information about users of the DRT On Demand program (“DRT On Demand”), including but not limited to through the mobile and online trip scheduling applications (the “Applications”).

This information includes:

1. Personal information about you, provided through voluntary registration;
2. Personal information regarding Your use of DRT On Demand, including but not limited to times and locations of trips booked, taken, or cancelled, and saved locations;
3. Personal information, provided to us by you through any other method (including without limitation correspondence and discussions);
4. Eligibility information for specialized transit services.

The personal information collected will be held by us or on our behalf or by such other agent as we may appoint from time to time. Via Transportation Inc., the Region’s third-party contractor, will have access to all personal information collected by DRT On Demand for purposes related to management and administration of DRT On Demand. Information may be stored on servers located in Canada or the United States.  

DRT On Demand will collect geo-location information, including your trips’ origin and destination, and will access and use the precise geo-location of your devices running the applications. 

This location information is used to facilitate trip planning and trip updates. The applications will only access and use your device’s location information if you give the application permission through your device settings or the application itself.

When you book a trip, DRT On Demand will collect information about the method of payment you intend to use. Payment itself is not managed through the Applications.

The PRESTO system is used to collect payments though the PRESTO fare card, credit cards and other contactless payment methods. The use and storage of payment information through PRESTO is governed by PRESTO’s applicable terms of service and privacy policy.

The Regional Municipality of Durham does not collect your debit or credit card details; this information is managed by PRESTO’s payment processor and is subject to their own privacy policies and procedures, as well as any applicable privacy laws, independent of The Regional Municipality of Durham. They may impose an additional transaction fee based on your transaction associated with The Regional Municipality of Durham. 

The personal information You provide will be used for the following purposes:

1. To allow you to use DRT On Demand;
2. To provide you with further information about DRT On Demand or other services, rewards, and/or promotions offered by us or which we consider may be of interest to you;
3. To verify your identity and assist in technical, administrative and/or service inquiries (e.g. password reset, pre-paid payments);
4. To investigate any complaints relating to misuse of DRT On Demand or misconduct in relation to DRT On Demand and to take any action deemed necessary to protect your safety and the safety of others in relation to those complaints;
5. To assist in making accommodations for specialized transit services;
6. To analyze in aggregate form (identifiable characteristics removed so that You will remain anonymous) for the purposes of continuous service improvement; 
7. To disclosure as may be required under applicable law, including but not limited to the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (MFIPPA) (Ontario), as amended or replaced from time to time.

You agree that we may disclose the following:

1. Your personal information to the police or other government authorities where we believe it is reasonably necessary to protect your safety or the safety of others with whom you have been travelling while using DRT On Demand;
2. Your personal information to third parties when we believe, in good faith, that we are required to do so by law;
3. Aggregate information and other information that does not personally identify you to such third parties as we may see fit.

With the exception of disclosures listed in section 5(a)-(c) above, we will not sell, lease, share or disclose personal information to private business, organizations or individuals unless required or permitted to do so by Applicable Law.

Notice of Collection:  Personal information is being collected for the purposes set out in section 4 above. This information is collected under the legal authority of Section 227 of the Municipal Act, 2001 for the purpose of administering the DRT On Demand program in the Region of Durham.

Questions about this collection should be forwarded to the Corporate Privacy Officer, Region of Durham at 605 Rossland Road East, Whitby, ON, L1N 6A3 or by calling 905-668-7711 or 1-800-372-1102.

 Failure to provide necessary personal information requested at the time of registration for use of DRT On Demand may result in certain services not being available to you.

We are committed to your privacy and strive to protect the personal and confidential information of those who use DRT On Demand. However, as no data transmission over the Internet can be guaranteed to be completely secure, we cannot ensure or warrant the security of any information you transmit or receive your personal information through DRT On Demand.

These activities are conducted at your own risk. It is Your responsibility to ensure you safeguard your devices appropriately and do not share your login or password.

If you want us to permanently delete your personal information from our servers, you must delete your account. So long as your account remains active, we will preserve your personal information. We will retain any and all personal information that we are required to retain under any Applicable Laws for the full duration of time required under those laws.

We may also retain any anonymized and de-identified information and continue to use this information in accordance with this Privacy Statement. DRT On Demand is not responsible for any information backed-up or stored on Your devices following the de-activation of your account.

If we decide to make material changes to our Privacy Statement, we will notify you and other users by placing a notice on the Durham Region Transit website. You should periodically check the Durham Region Transit website for updates. By using DRT On Demand after we have so posted notice of such modifications, alterations or updates you agree to be bound by such revised terms.

The Region’s Corporate Access and Privacy Office responds to requests for access to your personal information under MFIPPA.

 Read more about how to do this by visiting: Access to Information or by calling 905-668-7711 or 1-800-372-1102.

You will be responsible for changing, keeping up-to-date, and maintaining the accuracy and completeness of your own information in order for the best successful use of your information to provide you with the services available when using DRT On Demand.