RE: “OC Transpo driving students crazy,” Oct. 6-12, 2011
Let’s get one thing straight: the U-Pass and OC Transpo services are a privilege — not a right.
Before you send the scathing email about how the bus rolled past you one day, let me explain. In a sprawling city where it’s difficult to live close to campus, transportation inevitably comes into the equation. Living far requires some thought given to transportation.
Given an average student’s tight budget, cars are usually out of the question given the price of the vehicle, gas, insurance and maintenance. That leaves a few standard options: bike, walk, or bus.
Bikes are great, as they’re quick, cheap, clean and healthy. A basic road bike costs $300 or less. Walking is essentially free, but it takes a relatively long time compared to biking. One major problem for both options is the freezing Ottawa winters.
That leaves OC Transpo. Take the single mom struggling to make a living in Ottawa, for example. For her to have the same bus privileges as a university student over the eight-month U-Pass period, she has to pay $145 for each monthly pass — a whopping $1,160 in total.
Students pay $290 for the same full service over the same period. You do the math, folks. That’s a 75 per cent discount. They’re almost giving them away.
There is a trade-off, however. No one can opt-out of the program unless he or she meets the exemption criteria. The reason for this likely comes from the deal on OC Transpo’s end. They receive set revenue from all students on U-Pass sales. If some students opt-out, it drives the price up for everyone else.
The other option is for those of us who need bus passes to pay the full $1,160, or we’re walking in -25 C weather.
Instead of endlessly complaining and emailing your city councillor with your problems, email them with your solutions. Maybe there should be an ‘opt-in’ where they calculate the prices of students’ U-Passes based on the number of students who decide to take part.
Think a little before you rant. Regardless, given the economics of the situation, I see a scenario where a student who saves $870 to ride a warm bus to school has absolutely no right to complain about the quality of the service.
So yes, when the bus drives past you because it’s too packed and you call OC Transpo, they tell you they cannot send more buses because there aren’t enough riders to warrant more buses. However, what many fail to realize is that bus drivers are unionized. They strike for higher wages. This, in turn, drives your fare up.
I’m not saying that OC Transpo’s service is perfect. Bus drivers do drive erratically on occasion. They do ignore you. They do not respond when you say ‘thank you’ on your way out. They roll past me while I stand there looking like a fool almost daily.
This is no different from many bus services across Ontario. Students just need to take a step back and evaluate the options. Don’t complain about OC Transpo without the numbers in mind.
Realistically, missing a bus doesn’t affect my schoolwork. No one signed a contract saying that students require perfect bus service. Many people across the country miss buses. They have important things to do as well, and students do not have a divine right to OC Transpo.
Your right to criticize is directly proportional to your involvement. If you don’t know the facts, if you haven’t attended a municipal committee meeting concerning OC Transpo, if you haven’t talked to your MPP, and if you’re just angry you missed a bus, you have no right to complain.
The next time you receive poor service, think about the person struggling to make ends meet having to pay the full price, while students who can afford an $18,000 education are practically stealing them.
—Callum Micucci,
second-year journalism
