B.C.'s U-Pass program to continue for at least 5 years
Monthly fee will gradually increase each year until it hits $46
Ten years after it first launched, the provincial government's student public transit program, U-Pass B.C., has been extended for another five years.
Last year, the U-Pass was the subject of a referendum held by student associations at 10 institutions around Metro Vancouver to determine the future of the program.
The province said the extension received overwhelming support from the student unions.
Students also approved the pass's monthly fee.
"I cannot imagine what my post-secondary education experience would have been if I did not have my U-Pass," said UBC graduate Bowinn Ma, MLA for North Vancouver-Lonsdale and parliamentary secretary for TransLink.
"This kind of access and encouragement for students to choose more environmentally and socially responsible forms of transit helps shape the future of transportation in Metro Vancouver."
Ma says the provincial government is investing $86.1 million into the U-Pass program over the next five years.
Students with a U-Pass, which is loaded onto a Compass card, have unfettered access to TransLink's bus, SeaBus and SkyTrain systems, as well as discounted fares on the West Coast Express.
"Students are an important part of our customer base," TransLink CEO Kevin Desmond said in a statement.
In 2018, B.C. students using their U-Pass took 35 million TransLink trips.
Following student support from 10 public universities and colleges in <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/MetroVancouver?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#MetroVancouver</a>, the U-Pass BC program has been extended for five years, providing better access to transit for nearly 140,000 students. <a href="https://t.co/k6cdH0z0NE">https://t.co/k6cdH0z0NE</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/TransLink?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TransLink</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Vancouver?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Vancouver</a> <a href="https://t.co/7z64UYdutc">pic.twitter.com/7z64UYdutc</a>
—@TranBCThe monthly cost of $41 for a U-Pass won't change through April 2020, but that price will jump in May to $42.50.
All eligible students pay for it in their student fees.
Over the next five years, the price will continue to increase until it hits $46 a month.
The five-year extension will end on April 20, 2025.
Although the monthly fee is considered mandatory, TransLink's website says "the program does allow for a limited number of exemptions to be set by each post-secondary institution and their respective student association."