Ottawa city councillors and the Carleton and University of Ottawa students’ associations continue to clash over a proposed fare increase of the U-Pass.
The proposed increase would see students pay an additional $35 per semester at a total of $360 per year.
OC Transpo proposed a fee increase for the U-Pass after analyzing the cost of the program, said city councillor Keith Egli. Their investigation included two student rider surveys conducted in March and November 2010, he said.
OC Transpo concluded that a rate hike of 24 per cent was necessary to keep the U-Pass program revenue neutral, which was agreed to by all parties at the inception of the program.
OC Transpo’s figures have been validated by the city’s finance department, Egli said.
“We’ve done our due diligence and we think our estimates reflect the reality of the cost,” he said.
Carleton University Students’ Association (CUSA) vice-president (student issues) Chantle Beeso said an independent statistical analysis of the city’s numbers calls their accuracy into question.
“We hired . . . PhD candidates who looked into where there might be margins of error and they actually found a number of areas,” Beeso said.
The research document, titled “Evaluating the Costs and Benefits of the U-Pass Program: An Analysis,” claims OC Transpo’s estimates are based on a number of miscalculations.
“The most significant errors appear in the analysis of the use of cash, tickets, and O-Train fares. The statisticians commissioned by the students’ unions could not ascertain or replicate the figures presented by OC Transpo,” the report reads.
The report asserts that the current program at a cost of $145 per semester is actually generating, as opposed to losing, revenue for the city and for OC Transpo.
Beeso said students are frustrated because they feel their voices are not being heard.
“They’ve refuted our numbers, but not concretely as we have theirs . . . We signed the original agreement with the understanding that there would be opportunity to speak, but that hasn’t happened . . . They have shut down all discussions with us, and are just moving forward with $180,” she said.
Students and the councillors also disagree over whether real discussions have actually taken place.
“At the transit budget meeting, I made it a point to speak with students . . . I said, let’s look at some of your concerns . . . I think we spent more time discussing the U-Pass at the transit budget meeting than any other topic,” Egli said.
Beeso said service changes are another factor, with OC Transpo slashing $22 million from its budget this year and shifting routes that affect Carleton students living off-campus.
“We are opposed to that increase, especially because the 117 has been cut, creating difficulties for Carleton students living in Hog’s Back. Students are wondering why they are being asked to pay more for less,” she said.
Egli said the 111 route will receive part of the $5.5 million in next year’s transit budget that’s set aside to deal with increased traffic on certain routes.
He said some of this money will also be used to expand O-Train services, which many Carleton students rely on.
CUSA and the Student Federation of the University of Ottawa launched a campaign that saw over 10,000 students sign postcards protesting the proposed increase.
The campaign included an installation of a cardboard OC Transpo bus in the Unicentre atrium on Nov. 21 to get students’ attention.
“Students have been really receptive to what we’re trying to accomplish here, and they’re all pretty much on board with opposing a $70 increase in the price of the U-Pass,” said CUSA vice-president (internal) Ariel Norman.
The student unions plan to make their case by presenting the postcards to Mayor Jim Watson at city hall Nov. 30.
– with files from Jessica Chin
