Truck Articles

Last week I had written about how much money it was possible to save if you take public transportation. After that, I have came to the realization that there are a many varying possibilities for student bus passes across the nation. The example I used of the pass in Winnipeg ended up being roughly average, so that’s fine as far as the comparison went; however, upon looking at the many options around Canada I thought it may be useful to make note of the differences.

Possibly the most controversial issue of student bus passes in Canada is the potential of a majority of students on various campuses to make the passes mandatory. Universities which includes the University of Ottawa, the University of Victoria, Saint Mary’s University, and the University of Western Ontario have organized student referendums where students elected to include bus passes as part of their overall tuition and student user fees. At Ottawa this lead to a law suit by nine students against the University since they felt discriminated against.

Naturally this predicament has some positives and drawbacks. The really low cost of public transportation for many who use it is an indisputable bonus. On those campuses the rate was reduced to approximately a 100 dollars flat for the year! This is probably because of the increased volume of sales. The fact that students are required to get passes would definitely also help out the overall usage rates. This has great spin-off environmental effects, as well as the mentioned financial ones.

Myself personally, the disadvantages are far more prevalent to me. During my time at the University of Manitoba we had a referendum on whether to put together a obligatory package for public transportation to be supported by all students. I simply can’t get past the fact that it should not be considered realistic for a negligible majority of students to trample the legal rights of a large minority and take money out of their wallets to subsidize their preferred form of transportation. If I remember correctly, there was currently a percentage of the money used from parking fees to help counteract student bus pass costs. This is still a tough sell for me despite the environmental benefits. Not surprisingly as a vehicle owner I am definitely bias.

My personal distaste for certain 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 steady waste of time. The schedules were never correct, the constant disrespect of travellers, and the awful weather aspect of life in Winnipeg, was more than enough to motivate me to get my own car.

If perhaps I had attended school in British Columbia I may have a very different view of student bus passes. After a opinion from a local about her public transportation experience, I reviewed the Vancouver area options. I was blown away by the fantastic 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 each month. The great part of the deal is that this doesn’t solely cover the bus, but the Seabus and SkyTrain services as well! With such a extensive variety of options I would presume there is quite a bit of success with the program there.

In comparison, Winnipeg charges over $70 per month for its poor 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 rate from the information I was able to see on their site. The standard adult rate there for a month to month bus pass is $90.

One more thing for people (not just students) who use bus passes should be informed of is the non-refundable tax credit available. For most people you can get a pretty good idea of how much money you should get back on your taxes by multiplying the yearly rate of your bus passes by .15 (15%). This is a good little reward incentive for people who are already financially and environmentally mindful enough to use public transportation.

If you need a student bus pass be sure to check what your school has to offer. Maybe it has a program where it includes cheap student bus passes in their tuition.

Apr082011

Tags: bus pass, bus pass tax credit, cost of student bus pass, student bus pass, student bus pass cost, student bus pass in Canada, student bus pass Montreal, student bus pass options, Student bus pass Toronto, student bus pass Vancouver, Trucks

Trackback URI | Comments RSS