Student unions say city breaking 'contract' with 5% U-Pass hike
Proposed increase would raise cost of student pass by about $11 per semester
Student leaders at Ottawa's post-secondary institutions are accusing the city of breaking an agreement on transit fares with a proposal to raise the cost of the U-Pass by five per cent.
The U-Pass is charged to most students at Carleton University, the University of Ottawa, Saint Paul University and Algonquin College. Its cost is built into student fees, and students who want to opt out must meet certain conditions.
The pass cost about $229 for the current fall semester. By comparison, four monthly youth passes would cost a total of $397, and four adult passes $515.
The current U-Pass agreement is a "legally binding" contract, according to Carleton. It caps the maximum annual price increase at 2.5 per cent from the previous academic year.
The city's proposed increase is part of a larger effort to fill a $120-million transit funding gap in the upcoming budget, while avoiding further reductions to service levels.
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According to the city, the increases only require the approval of city council. In a statement to CBC, the city said the five per cent hike is "necessary," and all four institutions have been notified of the draft proposal.
Student unions say they weren't consulted
Both the U of O's and Carleton's student unions told CBC they were not consulted by the city, but a letter was sent to school administrators.
"It's definitely disheartening that the City of Ottawa seems to be taking out their financial mismanagement on people who depend on public transit in Ottawa and who are vulnerable," said University of Ottawa Student Union (UOSO) president Delphine Robitaille in an interview.
UOSO represents undergraduate students and is a signatory of the U-Pass agreement. In a letter to the city dated Nov. 19, the student union said as a non-profit, it can't legally change its fee structure without a referendum.
"To first have our [transit] service be cut, and then the costs that we're paying for it increased is definitely very, very disheartening," Robitaille said.
If the proposed raise holds, nearly 100,000 post-secondary students in Ottawa will have to pay about $240 per semester for their transit pass starting in January, or about $11 more than the current rate.
"It definitely came as a shock that the City of Ottawa was knowingly proposing to city council to breach an agreement, a legally binding agreement, that they've had for the last 14 or so years," Robitaille said.
'An unjust and detrimental burden'
Capital ward Coun. Shawn Menard said targeting students and seniors is not the way to help the transit budget.
Menard, along with College ward Coun. Laine Johnson and Rideau-Vanier Coun. Stéphanie Plante, sent a joint statement to the post-secondary schools in their wards expressing their solidarity, especially since Ottawa's U-Pass is already among the most expensive student transit passes in the country.
"The proposed increase to $240.52 would further exacerbate this disparity and place an unjust and detrimental burden on the students," the letter stated.
The pass is a win-win, the councillors argue: Students get more a affordable fare and OC Transpo is guaranteed a consistent, reliable revenue source.
From September 2023 to August 2024, U-Pass revenue was 27 per cent of total fare revenue, according to the councillors.
"We already have a hole in the budget that the feds should fill," Menard told CBC in an interview. "This should be part of that, and it shouldn't come on the backs of those students that are least able to afford it."
Mayor promises to work with schools
Robitaille said the proposed increase, if passed by council, will force the student union to reconsider its participation, which she said would cost OC Transpo millions of dollars.
Aidan Kallioinen with Carleton's undergrad students association said it's focused on pushing back before it gets to that point.
"If we can mobilize in a very short time, get students out to [the] transit commission meeting on Monday and tell the city that, look, this is unacceptable, we need to send this back, we need to come to better terms — I hope that will make a difference."
In an email to councillors on Friday, Mayor Mark Sutcliffe said city staff will work with the city's universities and colleges on any changes to the U-Pass.
The city budget is up for approval on Dec. 11.
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