WHAT IS THE U-PASS?

The U-Pass (Universal Bus Pass) is a program offered by the City of Winnipeg, facilitated by UMSU – as well as the University of Winnipeg Students’ Association for students at the UofW – in which all full-time students within the Winnipeg transit service area pay a subsidized bus pass fee and have unlimited access to transit from September to April the following year. It has been in existence since being approved in 2016 referendum, but the first contract expires at the end of the 2019/2020 academic term.

WHEN IS THE REFERENDUM?

The vote will take place on February 12-14 in a ranked ballot cast via UMSU.simplyvoting.com.

WHY ARE WE VOTING IN A REFERENDUM?

• The City of Winnipeg is imposing an increase to the cost of the U-Pass program in the next contract.
• UMSU is proposing a summer U-Pass option for students to consider should they want to continue the U-Pass program.
• The referendum is a ranked ballot vote with three options: continued enrollment, continued enrollment with a summer extension, and no further enrollment.

WHAT IS THE COST?

• The current cost of the U-Pass is $136.25 per academic term, fall and winter (each term is 4 months).
• The proposed new cost is $160.75 per term over the same period.
• This compares to a Post-Secondary Pass rate of $80.10 per month ($320.40 per term). Even at this rate, the U-Pass program provides a nearly 50% discount on transit use.

WHY IS THE COST INCREASING?

A combination of factors:

• The rate of subsidization for the number of users currently enrolled in the U-Pass between the UofM and UofW is high enough that the program is a net cost to the city.
• When Red River College gets added to the program, this will cause the overall subsidy amount to grow even if the rate of subsidy stayed the same.
• Due to the City’s budgetary situation, the rate of subsidy must decrease to ensure the overall subsidy amount remains static.

WHO USES THE U-PASS?

• 59% of eligible UofM students report as daily users of the U-Pass.
• 83% of eligible UofM students have activated their U-Pass.
• All full-time (3 courses+) students are automatically enrolled
• Anyone outside the transit service area will be eligible for an opt-out if they choose

WHY IS IT UNIVERSAL?

• In order for the cost to be so low, it needs to be a universal program.
• This works as an incentive for people to switch to being transit users given the decreased cost of transit and the increased cost of not using transit, making a positive impact in terms of transportation sustainability.
• If there was an opt-out for every student who did not or could not realistically bus to university, there simply would no longer be any incentive for the City to subsidize the program, and there would be no subsidy beyond the post-secondary rate for students who do bus ($80.10 per month).
• In other words: There is no U-Pass without universality; it has to be a universal pass, or we discontinue the U-Pass.

WHAT ABOUT THE SUMMER U-PASS?

• Recently UMSU has pushed the city to include a summer U-Pass option.
• Our summer proposal would allow the winter U-Pass to extend from January through until the end of August.
• This would increase the cost of the winter U-Pass to $237.90 – a $77.15 increase for the extra 4 months.
• All students eligible for the winter U-Pass would receive the U-Pass for the full 8-month period regardless of their students status in the summer.

CAN I ORGANIZE A CAMPAIGN TO ADVOCATE FOR AN OUTCOME I FEEL PASSIONATELY ABOUT?

Yes, absolutely, but you must first register your campaign – by doing so you will then get access to resources and a campaign office to make your voice heard.

To register, email UMSU’s Chief Returning Officer at cro@umsu.ca.

The registration period will happen from February 3-7, and the campaign period will happen from February 10-14.