Starting next year, students at UTM will get a full school year of rides on Mississauga Transit for $89-and some of them are furious about it. Meanwhile, both York and U of T’s St. George campus are mulling over their own pass deal.
“SAC, supposedly representing the interests of all students on campus, have been promoting the pass in an effort to see it go through, rather than trying to find a cost structure more favourable to all students on campus,” wrote Robin Prashad, one of a minority of students opposed to the deal.
Prashad objects to the fact that students can’t opt out of the $89 UPass program, even if they have no use for it. For some students-including those in residence, those who drive to school, those living in Toronto, Oakville and Brampton-Prashad said the UPass deal amounts to “effectively increasing tuition.”
Nonetheless, a student referendum last week ended in a landslide victory for the UPass campaign. The poll results, which will become official at a Monday night meeting, counted 1,716 votes for the UPass, 364 against, and 15 spoiled ballots. The 2,077 voters comprised about 22 per cent of UTM’s full-time students, an above-average turnout for a campus vote.
“It’s the best turnout of any vote I can remember,” enthused Vlad Glebov, SAC VP UTM. Glebov said he regrets that students will not be able to opt out of the UPass program, but maintained that Mississauga Transit would not agree to the deal otherwise.
Prashad recognized this, but said that if the student union insisted on the UPass, they should be prepared to offer a refund for it.
“Students who purchase a parking pass should be able to take this pass to SAC and receive full compensation for the UPass,” he said in an email.
Ryan Singh, VP campaigns of UTM’s student union, defended the referendum. According to Singh, because a compromise could not be struck to satisfy all students, letting the majority decide was the best option.
“We felt that it was important to get this out there…take it to referendum, see what the result was, and then start working on different kinds of solutions with [Mississauga] Transit,” he said.
Singh added that, though details have yet to be agreed on with MT, there would be no possibility of an opt-out “for the foreseeable future.”
Though the debate at UTM might seem remote to UTSC or St. George students who remain at a distance, discussions are already underway about launching a UPass program at those two campuses.
Last month, SAC president Jen Hassum and VP external Emily Shelton met with TTC commissioner Adam Giambrone and representatives from other colleges and universities to explore the possibility of a TTC UPass. According to Shelton, the TTC pass is tentatively priced at $60 to $70 per month (roughly five times more expensive than a Mississauga UPass).
SAC plans to hold a town hall meeting next month, date to be announced, to hear student opinions on the UPass. Shelton hastened to add that the talks were in a prelimary stage and that SAC would consult students before committing their money to the program.
“Ultimately, it’s up to the students at U of T,” Shelton assured.
No student representative would speculate how long the current UPass program would last before being scrapped or renegotiated. According to Glebov, that, too, is up to students.
