GO transit’s discounted student pass might go off the rails—but the Graduate Student Union is trying to keep cheap transit from the suburbs to downtown on the right track.
On Feb. 15, the Toronto Star reported that the GO Transit board of directors was considering an end to student discounts on its buses and trains. U of T’s Graduate Students’ Union (GSU) says this will result in fare increases of up to 60 per cent for older U of T students.
“We’re talking about a $500 per year increase, which is a lot of money if you’re a student,” said Aaron Meyers, executive-at-large at the GSU. As a result, the GSU, RyeSAC (The Ryerson student union) and other student groups are working together to rattle the GO directors’ cages.
“We’re trying to mobilize the students—we want people to write to the directors, to their MPPs, city councilors, to voice their concern,” said Meyers. “There are a lot of people involved.”
GO Transit Board Chairman Gordon Chong confirmed that the GO student discount was coming up for discussion at the next board meeting. He said the students were overreacting: “What’s proposed is to move from student discounts to a general youth discount,” he said. Under the proposed plan, GO would no longer offer discounts to post-secondary students, but to everyone under a certain age. In the current plan, that age is 22, although it could end up being 24 or 25. Chong called the plan “an extremely positive change,” and added that the new discount would apply all the time, not just during the week or the school year.
A GSU press release, however, called the plan “nothing more than a $1.3 million cash grab, taken from those who need affordable transportation the most.”
Under the current plan, a U of T student of any age pays $94 (plus tax) for a monthly GO pass. If the new plan is passed by the GO board of directors at their next meeting on March 14, a student over the age limit would have to pay $155 (plus tax) per month.
Meyers said that the plan was just a way of “taxing the students,” and especially graduate students, many of whom are likely to be over the age limit.
Chong said that GO is simply following other public institutions in their quest for higher revenues, including U of T. He cited the increase in tuition at the U of T law school as an example. “GO is catching up after lagging behind all these years. [Students] have had a relatively good discount over the years.”
Meyers encouraged students to contact the GSU or GO, and to come to the board meeting on March 14. “We’re mobilizing the students, and we’re trying to get on the agenda,” he said.
“This proposal will disadvantage some people,” Chong said, “but it will also advantage many students. Whether one is a student or a non-student, no one likes change.”
