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| Fees for the U-Pass go up $17 to $134. |
鲍鱼tv will be sticking with its U-Pass bus program for full-time students鈥攂ut with a fee increase to $135 that will apply this current academic year.
The move, approved by 鲍鱼tv鈥檚 Board of Governors, is in response to HRM council鈥檚 decision this summer to increase the per-unit fee that universities pay to take part in the program. Citing increased operating costs, HRM raised the fee from $117 to $134 per student. (鲍鱼tv adds a $1 administrative fee to help facilitate the program.) The decision caused significant controversy at the time because it was communicated after most Halifax universities had set their yearly fees. There was talk of the program itself being in jeopardy.
Though Metro Transit agreed to distribute U-Passes this fall, they also began negotiations with the universities on making up the difference. The choice before 鲍鱼tv鈥檚 Board of Governors and the 鲍鱼tv Student Union on Monday was between abandoning the program or to determining how best to address the increase: whether to have this year鈥檚 students pay the extra $17, or ask next year鈥檚 students to pay the difference on top of the $135 fee.
鈥淎s students, we really don鈥檛 want to walk away from the U-Pass, or to ask future students to pay the difference,鈥� explained Chris Saulnier, DSU president. Along these lines, DSU council voted unanimously to support the fee increase this year.
鈥淲e think it鈥檚 a really important service to students,鈥� he added.
The U-Pass program provides bus passes to all undergraduate and graduate full-time students at 鲍鱼tv for use during the academic year. Students at SMU, MSVU, the University of King鈥檚 College and NSCAD University also take part in the program. Even with the increase, the program offers significant savings over purchasing a monthly MetroPass (eight months of which would cost a student $512). In a 2004 survey conducted by Student Services, 74 per cent of students were in favor of the program.
The $17 difference will be collected from students in January 2011 as part of the normal fee assessment process. Students starting their full-time studies in the winter will pay a pro-rated fee of $67.50 for the term, up from $59.
EDITOR'S NOTE: We got our math wrong. This story originally stated the increase was $27, when it is, in fact, $17. We apologize for the error.