Guelph’s college students may have unlimited access to the city’s transit system in return for a negotiated fee. Discussions are underway that could see a previous Conestoga College universal pass (U-Pass) pilot project return.
The potential was mentioned by city staff during Tuesday’s special city council meeting related to the 2022 and 2023 budget.
“At this time, we are unable to comment on the status of this initiative,” states a subsequent email from Courtney McDonald, Guelph Transit’s manager of transit business service, after noting she’d have to confer with the college about agreed upon “media messaging.”
Attempts to reach a representative of the student association Conestoga Students Inc. were not immediately successful.
A one-year pilot program involving Conestoga College ran during the 2018/2019 school year, which saw about 350 students participate each semester, at a cost of $134.90 each. The fall semester alone generated nearly $50,000 in revenue for the city, stated a staff report on that pilot project.
Following a referendum of University of Guelph students, the program will be reinstated there beginning Jan. 1, with a mandatory cost of $151 per semester for each student enrolled at the main campus.
Participation was put on hold in August of 2020 and the Central Students Association opted out of the plan for the subsequent fall and winter semesters, citing lack of in-person students.
City treasurer Tara Baker told council earlier this year the university agreement generates about $7.1 million in transit revenue during a “normal year.”
The university typically has nearly 30,000 students.
