Students' union withholding U-Pass fees

CTV Saskatoon: USSU withholding U-Pass payments The University of Saskatchewan Students' Union says it will not pay U-Pass fees to Saskatoon Transit until the bus lockout comes to an end.

Students at the University of Saskatchewan will be reimbursed everyday city busses remain stalled, the students’ union said Tuesday.

The union will withhold paying U-Pass fees to Saskatoon Transit until the bus lockout comes to an end.

“I cannot ask for students to pay for a service they’re not receiving,” students’ union president Max FineDay told CTV.

“Students feel like they should be getting some of this money back in their pockets.”

U-Pass, a discounted bus pass, is a service used by 14,700 students. The USSU will hold about $8,900 per day, or 60 cents per day per student, FineDay said.

Bus drivers have been locked out by the City of Saskatoon since Saturday night after contract talks failed.

The university added additional temporary parking this week to cushion some of the blow from the lockout, but lots were still jammed. Bike racks were full.

“Students rely on this service and students have had to come up with alternative measures,” FineDay said.

Some students missed class on Monday because they were unable to get to campus, he added.

“It’s been a real inconvenience.”

The university typically hands over the U-Pass fees to Saskatoon Transit in October, according to FineDay.

The city said Tuesday they will be providing refunds and extensions to all bus pass holders, including U-Pass and EcoPass customers.

Both the city and the USSU said they have yet to work out details on how the refunds will be issued.