Photo by Kyle West

By: Rimsha Laeeq

As a commuter at McMaster University, getting home early isn’t always an option. For students who commute, studying late for a midterm in the library or attending an evening event is hardly an easy decision to make.

When deciding to stay late on campus as a commuter, transit is an issue to consider. It is crucial for students to be involved in the many activities that the university hosts. Students should not have to worry about their safety when commuting home from school.

This is why the Hamilton Street Railway should extend their bus schedules to the later hours of the evening.

The HSR has many buses that operate throughout the day, from the eastbound to the westbound, including the 5, 1, 51 and the 10, otherwise known as the B-Line Express.

Nevertheless, after 7:00 p.m., the B-Line stops running, meaning off-campus students have to either arrange their own rides or take one of the three other buses, which usually requires transferring onto another bus in downtown Hamilton.

As an off-campus student, the last B-line bus I can take to reach home under an hour departs from McMaster at 6:43 p.m. With most events ending after this, it becomes difficult for me to get home.

My 50-minute commute on one bus turns into an hour and 15-minute commute over two buses, and includes waiting in the heart of downtown to catch the second bus.

Students living off-campus are often forced to leave campus early and miss amazing events that McMaster offers because their bus won’t run after a specific time.

Being a university student does not mean to solely “work with academics”. I believe it is important for the HSR to extend their bus timings not only for the safety of their students but to allow students to become more involved with the different events taking place on campus.

With extended bus timings, students can engage in the abundant cultural events occurring at McMaster, with the opportunity to meet several other students at the university from a variety of programs and levels. This gives students the benefit of learning about the diverse cultures present at McMaster.

Off-campus students shouldn’t feel like they don’t belong, or don’t have a say in many of the events taking place due to inconvenient bus timings. These students, including myself, need to be a part of the university culture.

When it comes to academics, H.G. Thode Library of Science and Engineering is open until 2:00 a.m. during exam season for students to effectively study, whether that be alone or in groups.

For most students, once you sit down to study and are motivated to do so, you can study for hours on end. With a restricted time period due to bussing, this can often demotivate students, as getting in a ‘grind’ mode may be quite difficult for some.

Additionally, students study differently, which means that they need to be able to switch up their study environments. Some students prefer to study on campus while others prefer their home. Students shouldn’t have to compromise their academics because a bus doesn’t run at a later time.

For students who commute using the B-Line Express, this bus only runs on weekdays. With midterms, exams or other events occurring on the weekend, students are forced to take two or more buses or find alternate means of transport to get on campus.

Students should not be afraid of staying late at the school they attend. They should feel safe and have no difficulty commuting back and forth from campus on the daily.

When considering the safety of students, their involvement at McMaster and networking with people to make their university career a more fun-filled experience, HSR bus timings should most definitely be extended.

For students who are currently commuting and have to stay late, the McMaster Students Union offers a volunteer service, the Student Walk Home Attendant Team, who will walk or bus with students to their destination. This service is open seven days a week from 7:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m.

 

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Students who are familiar with the old bus pass sticker will have to adjust to a two-card system for the 2015-16 academic year.

In the past, the bus pass was designated a section of the validation sticker on the front of every student ID card. This year, in order to take advantage of their $138.65 Hamilton Street Railway bus pass fee, students will be required to have a secondary card with the last three digits of their student number.

Students will have a grace period extending until 11:59 p.m. on Sept. 21 where both the old sticker and the new bus pass will be accepted. Afterwards, students will be required to pick up the secondary bus card from one of the campus bookstores in order to freely board any HSR transit.

“Over time, we’ve looked to becoming more efficient around our processes,” said University Registrar Melissa Pool on the change to a second, physical card.

“I think everyone thought that the sticker equates the bus pass, but it was really a part of broader processes that we’ve moved away from.”

Where the validation sticker once served multiple purposes, the HSR bus pass remains the last vestige of a sticker that was originally intended for other reasons. The majority of those services have since gone electronic, and so the university has been looking for alternatives for several years.

According to MSU VP (Finance) Daniel D’Angela, while the new system is not specifically based on any one system, schools like the University of Western Ontario were examined to understand how the distribution and implementation process would work.

John McGowan, Business Manager with the McMaster Students Union, explained that the change was also an indication of future goals between the MSU, HSR, and various other partners.

“Longer term, there’s been discussions with Presto and the HSR […] about having a solution that’s based on the Presto card,” said McGowan. “I think that’s the ideal solution.”

But some of the changes behind implementing the new bus pass remain unclear. For example, the secondary card does not appear to be more secure than the previous sticker method, since the final three digits on the bus card are simply written in Sharpie.

The largest point of contention is the drastic increase in the replacement cost of lost or stolen bus passes. In the past, a replacement would cost students $30. Now an initial replacement fee will cost $100, with each subsequent replacement running students $150.

Nancy Purser, HSR’s Manager of Transit Support Services, explained how the replacement fee emphasizes the value of the card to each student.

“It’s basically a highly reduced transit pass that’s good for 12 months, and it represents over a thousand dollars in transit fares,” she said.

“We should have done this a long time ago; however, the replacement fee represents that this card has a lot of value.”

Yet D’Angela explained that the MSU recognizes that the cost of replacement is uncomfortable for many students, and remains a point of discussion for the future.

“We’re still looking at ways to bring the price down [...] because I think $100 is very, very cost-prohibitive for students, and I don’t think it’s fair for students to have to pay that $100 if they lose something,” said D’Angela. “Steps should be taken to prevent fraud, but I think when it’s not fair to students, that’s when it’s a problem.”

The replacement fee increase in particular has angered several students, and a group identifying themselves as the Student Mobilization Syndicate has initiated an online petition entitled “Stop the Replacement Fee Hike for Bus Passes.”

Kathleen Quinn, a third year Political Science student and one of the organizers of the petition, explained that the replacement fee increase is not a fair cost to expect students to cover.

“Our position is pretty reasonable: we’re asking that the fee be reduced to either last year’s $30, like when you had your sticker with the student card, or something in line with the cost of making and administering the card,” she explained.

As of Wednesday, Sept. 9, the online petition has reached 853 supporters. Although McGowan explained that the HSR is endeavoring to look at each issue for replacement on a case-by-case basis, Quinn stated that she was against any kind of an exemption-based system.

“When you have an exemption system, it’s two-tiered, and that’s not right, because everyone pays the same amount. And I also think it’s an invasion of privacy if these sorts of guidelines make you prove financial need, make you prove these things,” she said.

Those involved have echoed that the current implementation of the bus passes this year is a pilot project. Both McGowan and D’Angela reiterated that the MSU’s goal is to minimize the replacement cost to students, in a fair and equitable manner.

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After months of negotiation with the HSR, the McMaster Students Union has reached an agreement with the transit organization to offer two options for service improvements to McMaster students.

With student electoral support, McMaster’s student bus pass could include extended service for Route 51-University, a 12-month bus pass, or both.

MSU President David Campbell and VP (Finance) Jeffrey Doucet represented students in the meetings.

Doucet wrote a memo to the Student Representative Assembly detailing the options.

“Our goal has been to negotiate fair options for service increased and then present them to students through referendum,” he said.

Current McMaster bus passes are included in student fees and cost each student $126.50—equivalent to 145 per cent of the price of a monthly adult pass.

Campbell said that discussions kept in mind the current bargain.

“Here at Mac we do get a pretty good deal on the bus pass, when you think about the cost,” he said. “We were just looking for add-ons and improvements.”

Two options will be voted on by students pending SRA approval, which would include additional costs voted into effect.

A motion will be brought before the SRA to add the issue as a referendum during the MSU presidential election in January. Whatever changes are voted in by students will be implemented in Sept. 2014.

One option is enhanced service on Route 51-University. For an extra cost of $6.50 per student, the 51 will increase its frequency between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. to every 10 minutes, rather than the current 15. Also included in this option is increased service between 10 p.m. and 3 a.m. Presently, the last 51-University of the night runs through campus around 11p.m.

Route 51-University would be the first bus in Hamilton to run until 3 a.m.

“If a student takes the bus once during their school year as opposed to taking a cab, they will have earned their money back on their investment,” said Doucet.

The other option is a 12-month bus pass. For an additional $6.00 per student the student bus pass would be extended from an 8-month to a full-year pass.

Regarding the summer extension, Doucet said, “We believe we have delivered incredible value for students as this represents just over two bus rides paying by cash.”

The per student cost of the service enhancements will be made possible because the HSR will contribute funds to the improvements as well.

Increased service of the 51-University will cost approximately $240,000. McMaster student fees will pay for $140,000 and the HSR will cover the other $100,000.

Once the issue comes to referendum, McMaster students will vote for one of several options moving forward.

Students can vote to keep the current eight-month pass at 145 per cent of the adult monthly rate, pay $6.50 more, per student for enhanced 51-University service, pay $6.00 more for a 12-month pass, or vote to adopt both changes and incur an extra cost of $12.50 per student. They may also vote to reject all agreements and have no bus pass in Sept. 2014.

Negotiations have been ongoing since before the start of the school year.

“We met almost once a month from August until now,” said Doucet.

He continued, “I think the reaction will be pretty positive…we’re going to be trying to educate students about the options, that we think are a really good value, and let them decide.”

Campbell agreed, saying “We tried to get the best deal to put in front of people, ultimately it’s up to the students, but I think the deals are really good.”

Tobi Abdul
Staff Reporter

It has happened to all of us at one point: there you are, on time for the bus, only a few metres away when it just flies by, without you on it, causing you to be late for whatever important presentation or appointment you were off to. Or similarly, it’s freezing cold and you’re on time for the bus and just before literally freezing your fingers off, it does come. But unbelievably late, causing you to be late for whatever important presentation or appointment you were off to.

If you’ve ever been on the 5 or the 51, you know that once the bus reaches campus, it basically empties. Yet, despite this, the HSR has done nothing to cater its services on the 5 or 51 towards students.

We may not pay per trip, but regardless of how much we pay in comparison to what it costs, the fact that we do should guarantee us a service that actually works for us, instead of one where it’s a gamble as to if the buses are even going to show up at all.

To quote HBO: winter is coming. And despite all the bundling up that us Canadians have to endure to survive the freezing cold, walking sucks.

The HSR is unreliable at best. I may not know much about the bureaucracy behind the bus system but I can’t imagine that it really takes that much to make sure the buses are relatively on time or viagra alternative at most, make sure the buses actually show up.

We deserve something a little better considering that we pay for this service and until the HSR recognizes the fact that the student demographic are its biggest constituents on the 5 or 51, they will make no steps to give us better service.

 

 

        @toe_bee

Dina Fanara

Assistant News Editor

 

Students trying to get to and from McMaster may have a hassle on their hands.

Hamilton Street Railway (HSR) workers may begin striking on Jan. 30 after Members of the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 107 voted 94 per cent to strike on Jan. 15.

The HSR workers, under the ATU Local 107, have been in negotiations with the City of Hamilton for a three-year contract. Despite over a year of negotiation, an agreement has not been reached, during which time, HSR workers have been on the job without a contract.

Some demands made by ATU Local 107 include annual hourly pay increases for the next three years, changes to overtime pay for part-time workers and increased vacation allowance based on years of service. a

A Jan. 24 offer by the City was rejected by the union. If negotiations fall through, over 600 employees will strike.

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