The School Bus Pass - The Reason Why There Are Plenty Of Debates Because Of Them
The previous week I wrote about how much money it was plausible to save through public transportation. Since that time, I have came to the realization that there are a quite a few assorted options for student bus passes across the nation. The example I used of the pass in Winnipeg turned out to be around average, so that’s good as far as the comparison proceeded to go; however, shortly after considering the various options around Canada I thought it might be interesting to make note of the differences.
Perhaps the most controversial aspect of student bus passes in Canada is the power of a majority of college students on many campuses to make the passes mandatory. Universities just like the University of Ottawa, the University of Victoria, Saint Mary’s University, and the University of Western Ontario have organised student referendums where students elected to include bus passes together with their overall tuition and student user fees. At Ottawa this lead to a law suit by 9 students against the University given that they felt discriminated against.
Naturally this scenario has some advantages and disadvantages. The extremely low cost of public transportation for those who use it is an indisputable incentive. For those campuses the cost was reduced to close to a 100 bucks flat for the year! This is very likely because of the improved volume of sales. The fact that students are obligated to get passes would certainly also assist the overall usage rates. This has great spin-off environmental effects, together with the mentioned financial ones.
Personally, the negative aspects are much more prevalent to me. During my time at the University of Manitoba we had a referendum on whether to put together a obligatory bundle for public transportation to be supported by all students. I just simply can not get past the fact that it should not be considered realistic for a negligible majority of students to trample the rights of a massive minority and take money out of their pockets to subsidize their preferred form of transportation. If I remember correctly, there was presently a percentage of the money used from parking fees to help offset student bus pass costs. This is still a hard sell for me despite the environmental benefits. Of course as a vehicle owner I am definitely bias.
My personal distaste for specific aspects of public transportation is most likely a result of the Winnipeg pubic transit system. No matter how much money I was saving I couldn’t justify the constant waste of time. The schedules were hardly ever correct, the constant disrespect of passengers, and the lousy weather aspect of life in Winnipeg, was enough to inspire me to get my own car.
In the instance that I had went to school in British Columbia I would possibly have a very different perspective of student bus passes. After a comment from a local concerning her public transportation experience, I checked out the Vancouver area options. I was amazed by the great deal they got and the fact it was not subsidized by other students (this means it doesn’t punish the students that walk, bike, or drive to school). The U-Pass (universal pass) is available to post-secondary students for the low price of $30 monthly. The really great part of the deal is that this doesn’t only just cover the bus, but the Seabus and SkyTrain services as well! With such a comprehensive variety of options I would presume there is a reasonable amount of success with the program there.
In comparison, Winnipeg charges over $70 per month for its shoddy patchwork of buses. Other monthly public transportation rates for students consist of $89 for a metro pass in Toronto, $41 in Montreal for a combined metro and bus pass, $71 for a student bus pass in Saskatoon, and Calgary didn’t even have a student price from the information I have been able to see on their web page. The standard adult rate there for a regular bus pass is $90.
One other thing for people (not just students) who use bus passes should be advised of is the non-refundable tax credit available. For many people you will get a pretty good idea of how much money you should get back on your taxes by multiplying the annual price of your bus passes by .15 (15%). This is a good little reward incentive for people who are already financially and environmentally conscious enough to use public transportation.
Obtaining a cheap student bus pass is a popular way to save money when going to school. cheap student transportation is highly important to any university aiming to make a subsidised program to their students.