Originally Posted by kitty1

as a hamilton resident the 12 month bus pass sounds amazing! but as someone who is graduating this year, this sucks :(

I agree with you. This will benefit me since I am a Hamilton resident. Although, if I get accepted for a second degree at Mac, this will totally be useful.

I don't really think the 12-month service will benefit enough of the student body to be justifiable (though it'll be awesome for summer semester students and hamilton residents), but the enhanced Route 51 service (With more frequent busses and service till 3am) would be an improvement in service for almost everyone that currently uses the bus. I'm all for the Route 51 enhancement.

If only the B-line would run until 3 am. That would make life wonderful and much easier lol

I'm hoping the referendum will let us rank our choices - I'd like both upgrades but if I had to pick one it would be the 12 month pass.

I think the pass the way it is now benefits the majority of students. I don't know if I'll bother to vote though, seeing as I commute to school and have probably used the buses in Hamilton less than 10 times since starting at Mac. That's always been a bit frustrating to me, that I'm essentially paying for something I don't use but it's not something we can opt out of.

The cost of upgrading to a 12 month bus pass is so small. Regardless of whether you are living here in the summer or not, I think the extra small costs is definitely worth it overall. For the cost of two cups of coffee/student, we can have an extended bus pass that will go all year-round. I don't think I will be in Hamilton this summer and I would still pay the $6 for the greater benefit.

Originally Posted by dreamer21

I think the pass the way it is now benefits the majority of students. I don't know if I'll bother to vote though, seeing as I commute to school and have probably used the buses in Hamilton less than 10 times since starting at Mac. That's always been a bit frustrating to me, that I'm essentially paying for something I don't use but it's not something we can opt out of.

You can vote not to have a bus pass at all.

Originally Posted by starfish

You can vote not to have a bus pass at all.

While I doubt that option will get enough votes to be taken seriously, I feel like I should still voice my opinion that it's one that shouldn't even be considered. The $126 students pay now for the 8-month pass is an amazing deal to the alternative of paying $696 for eight months for a regular adult monthly bus passes. Considering the number of students that live off-campus but within Hamilton, the money some students will save by not paying the $126 is tiny compared to extra students will pay for equivalent 8-month passes.

126 + 6 bucks and people still complain? People are never happy. Guess they should opt out and pay 1000 for 8 moths worth of monthly passes, that will give them a different perspective.

Originally Posted by MrPlinkett

126 + 6 bucks and people still complain? People are never happy. Guess they should opt out and pay 1000 for 8 moths worth of monthly passes, that will give them a different perspective.

i couldn't agree more, people are always complaining. there is no way of making mcmaster students happy

Originally Posted by MrPlinkett

126 + 6 bucks and people still complain? People are never happy. Guess they should opt out and pay 1000 for 8 moths worth of monthly passes, that will give them a different perspective.

You know that's how it works right? It used to be $108 or something 3 years ago. Now it's $126, if this goes through, it'll be $132. Next negotiation, it'll be $150.

Originally Posted by Afzal

You know that's how it works right? It used to be $108 or something 3 years ago. Now it's $126, if this goes through, it'll be $132. Next negotiation, it'll be $150.

It's still a total steal. And it's not like we aren't getting more for paying more. The price of gas is increasing too...bas fares aren't just going up for us, it's all transportation.

Originally Posted by Commie42

It's still a total steal. And it's not like we aren't getting more for paying more. The price of gas is increasing too...bas fares aren't just going up for us, it's all transportation.

Your in commerce? View it from the angle of HSR. Its a total steal for them. Although id continue the bus pass for sure despite not using it much, we are getting ripped off pretty badly. And if the MSU failed to get some sort of bus pass it would be pretty bad since every major university has a bus pass...

In case there's anybody who can't follow the numbers that well, here it is:
-Students have it EXCEPTIONALLY good. At 2$ per ride, they're getting the transportation hella cheap in comparison.

-The trade-off is that it relies on the assumption that only a very small percentage of students will actually use the HSR student card pass. All in all, just giving students, even if not all of them use it, the incentive to travel around the city does wonders for tourism/businesses.

If we push towards more incentives for bus pass users, then we're taking money from the vast majority who specifically DON'T use this service. In a way, it's very slimy, because making these changes do not benefit those who are paying into it. It's kind of like how taxing in society works, only in this case we're trying to tell people how to live (i.e. go and explore Hamilton). I don't necessarily disagree with this, because a lot of students are anti-Hamilton pricks who come to school and go back to where they came from when they don't need to be here.

$126 < $1000
$132 < $1000
$150 < $1000

hmm, nah, I say we better keep the bus pass.