THE UNIVERSITY OF VICTORIA
MARCH 19, 1999
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THE UNIVERSITY OF VICTORIA |
After the highest voter turnout in student elections at the university this decade, over two-thirds of UVic students have agreed to add $44 a semester to their fees in exchange for unlimited term-time service on all Greater Victoria transit routes.
After two weeks of campaigning &emdash; and despite a potentially damaging bus strike during the voting period &emdash; 3,175 students voted for and 1,520 voted against, for a total of 68 per cent in favour of accepting the U-pass proposal.
"This is great news for all UVic students, the university, and the greater Victoria community," says Rob Fleming, chairperson of the UVic Students' Society (UVSS), which negotiated the U-pass scheme with B.C. Transit.
The U-pass, which is scheduled to begin in September, is a compulsory levy on all students, whether or not they are regular bus users. According to the UVSS, the pass will not only save students money on their transportation costs, it will also provide incentive to students with cars to use transit services and reduce parking demands at UVic.
The university is supporting the U-pass by contributing $170,000 a year from parking permit revenues to keep the cost of the passes affordable. Student and ancillary services will also fund the estimated $15,000 cost of the new student identification cards that will be required.
Fleming describes the U-pass as "the single best incentive to get people out of their cars." He says that 80 per cent of air pollutants are from vehicle emissions, and that after 20 years of negotiating bus concessions for students, the UVSS thinks the "timing is right" for an effective transportation alternative for the university. There are 60 U-pass schemes at universities across North America, he adds, and all have led to transit ridership increases of between 15 and 50 per cent.