U-Pass price hike approved
By Graeme McNaughton/The Oshawa Express
After months of debates and delays by regional councillors, university and college students finally have an answer on the future pricing for their transit passes.
However, the region is looking at the potential losses it faces should upset students decide to kill the program.
At the latest meeting of the transit executive committee, councillors voted in favour of incremental price increases to the U-Pass – which allows postsecondary students in the region to use public transit at a steep discount – that will stretch into 2018.
According to a report presented to and approved by councillors, the price of a U-Pass will bump up to $135 for the fall semester in 2017, and then to $150 for the following fall.
This is an adjustment over the original plan, which saw the $135 level come into effect this summer.
Currently, students pay $103 per term, with the price set to go up to $120 this coming fall.
At the previous transit executive committee meeting, Jesse Cullen, the president of the student association for UOIT and Durham College, said that a price increase would have to be put to a student vote, which could result in the U-Pass getting killed.
In a presentation to councillors, Jim Clapp, the region’s finance commissioner, told councillors that there will be fewer people filling up bus seats in Durham.
“We do know that there is going to be some ridership loss. As soon as there’s a rate increase, you’re going to lose some of your audience. There’s no question about it,” Clapp said, adding that if the region loses 25 per cent or more of its student riders, it will start to feel the hit financially.
“We would start feeling the pinch of lost revenue.”
The debate over the pricing of the U-Pass goes back to early December, when the notion was first put forward in a report to the committee.
After being pushed forward at that meeting, it was brought up again in February, where it was again delayed after Oshawa mayor John Henry said the committee needs to look at other ways of raising revenue before increasing prices, bringing up ideas such as putting infrastructure funds from the federal government towards the transit authority’s running costs and introducing off-peak pricing to encourage more people to ride the bus.
Cullen, who spoke before the price hike was passed, said it would be unwise to do so, citing new money from the federal government announced in its recent budget for transit.
“I think increasing the U-Pass fee right now would be premature and shortsighted considering that there is new money for transit that was announced in the budget that is over and above commitments that the previous government made,” he told councillors.
“We think that should be taken into consideration when we’re talking about the U-Pass increase and funding transit in the Region of Durham.”