Metrobus Transit Study.pdf - City of St. John's

St. John’s Transportation Commission (Metrobus) 2011
Market Assessment and Strategic Directions Study – Part D: Strategic Directions
A U-Pass program results from a specific negotiation typically conducted among the transit system,
the administration of the post-secondary institution and the student association. When implemented,
all students pay a fixed amount as part of their fees and have full access to transit on a semester or
annual basis. Typically, the cost is significantly discounted from a regular monthly pass because the
U-Pass is universal (all students contribute to the program but not all students use the service).
A student referendum is required to launch the initiative and experience has shown that once
implemented there is very high approval rating by all parties. Aside from the specific benefits related
to low travel cost, reduced campus parking requirements, increased location choice for student
accommodations, reduction of neighbourhood issues, etc., there is the significant benefit that
accrues to the environment from the growth in transit usage by post-secondary students. For transit
systems, the benefit is both additional revenue and a move to higher service levels throughout the
service area which benefits all users.
Table 14 illustrates the comparison of Metrobus with several communities that have successfully
implemented a U-Pass with post-secondary institutions.
Municipality
Table 14 – U-Pass Comparison (2008 data)
Service Area
Population
Ridership/
Capita
Revenue Vehicle
Hours/Capita
Revenue/Cost
St. John’s, 127,097 24.84 1.0 41%
Guelph, ON 120,000 44.79 1.87 39%
St. Catharines, ON 150,000 34.29 0.99 53%
North Bay, ON 49,000 37.23 1.24 52%
Halifax, NS 312,400 62.52 2.26 52%
The comparison shows that municipalities that have implemented the U-Pass have been able to
achieve significantly higher service levels and utilization, with reasonable financial efficiency. In
Guelph, students are very satisfied with the U-Pass and constitute approximately 57 percent of the
system ridership. With an enrolment of 20,000, Guelph University is comparable to Memorial
University with a 17,000 enrolment. The key difference is that Guelph University students make up
57 percent of Guelph Transit’s ridership while post-secondary students in St. John’s only make up
27 percent Metrobus ridership. The fare and subsequent level of service provided is a key
differentiator. The Metrobus semester pass costs $245 while a one semester U-Pass in Guelph costs
$62. Since the pass is universal and applied to all 20,000 students, the revenue generated was used to
improve overall service levels. The program is so popular among students that in 2010 students
voted 90 percent in favour of a 41 percent increase in the cost of the U-Pass to better reflect the
service provided (currently $82.15 per semester).
In St. Catharines, the U-Pass was implemented in 2003. In 2002 the ridership was 3,000,000 and by
2005 ridership had increased to 4,600,000. In Halifax, average monthly transit trips by students
increased from 7-8 trips to 14 trips after the first year of implementation (CUTA U-Pass Toolkit,
2004).
CNA and Memorial University students were asked about their level of interest in a U-Pass for their
respective post-secondary institution. Based on the information provided, 65 percent of CNA
Dillon Consulting Limited Page 68