MUN students will vote on U-Pass, but MUN board has final say
Students at Memorial University will get a chance to vote at the end of the month on whether or not they want a mandatory universal bus pass, but its union worries that's not enough say in the final decision.
The vote on the proposed U-Pass is just that — a vote, and not a referendum — meaning the results are non-binding. Those results will be presented to the university's board of regents, who will then make the ultimate decision on whether to press forward with the pass, and its $139 per semester price tag.
"We don't want students to pay any extra fees, especially if they're not going to go a referendum," said Bailey Howard, MUN student's union executive director of external affairs.
"MUNSU's stance is always that there should be a referendum any time that there is a fee for students, that the students would have that decision."
In an email to CBC Radio's On The Go, the university said "the full results of the vote, the number of students participating, and the response will be reported to the Board in full and the decision of the board will be significantly informed by these results."
The vote, which will gauge student opinion on the pass, was not advertised as a referendum, and the student union has been well-aware of the distinction.
Students surveyed
The school said the pass will ease traffic congestion in the city and on its campus, and make it easier and less expensive for many students to use public transit. Its plan includes new proposed routes and improved services.
A student survey was also circulated on the issue.
"Students indicated to us that in general, $100 to $150 a semester was reasonable if the value was there," said Jordan Wright, a manager in the office of the associate vice-president for facilities, of the survey.
"So we really focused the investment on improving those headways, less time between buses, and evening and weekend service, which were things students wanted to see."
The MUNSU wants an opt-out clause for the pass, for people who don't want it, or won't use it.
"I think what we're looking at now is that they're trying to update and make the service better for the entire city of St. John's and surrounding area that currently has the Metrobus," she said.
"This shouldn't be something that students are paying for, and then they're improving the service," she said. "There should be an improved service, and then students will have the option to avail of having the U-Pass."
The opt-out option was not presented to students, but about about 12 per cent of people who filled in the survey said they would like to see one.
St. John's city council put a planned review of the Metrobus transit system on hold until after the decision is made on any new service for university and college students.
Full-time students at MUN's St. John's campus, Centre for Nursing Studies, and Marine Institute will have the opportunity to vote between Feb. 26 and Feb 28.
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