uOttawa to reconsider participation in U-Pass if city increases student fares, student union says

The student union at the University of Ottawa says it will consider pulling its participation from the U-Pass, which provides discounted transit fares for students, if the city goes forward with hiking student transit fees and violating the program’s contract.

The student union at the University of Ottawa says it will consider pulling its participation from the U-Pass, which provides discounted transit fares for students, if the city goes forward with hiking student transit fees and violating the program’s contract.

The City of Ottawa set out in its 2025 draft budget that it would be raising fees by five per cent a year for the U-Pass, double the allowable 2.5 per cent increase the University of Ottawa Student Union (UOSU) says the city had agreed to.

A letter sent on Wednesday to the City of Ottawa's director of transit customer systems and planning Pat Scrimgeour says the union is "incredibly disappointed" in the increase and states the decision would "only exacerbate" the financial strain students are facing in an affordability crisis.

"The UOSU will be auditing student satisfaction with the U-Pass program and will reconsider the program’s continuation if OC Transpo continues to deprioritize services for our members, who collectively contribute $20 million annually to its budget," the letter signed by UOSU president Delphine Robitaille and UOSU advocacy commissioner Alexandra Stratas said.

"With ridership rates in Ottawa steadily declining, we urge the City to rethink its decision to violate a contract that grows in value for the City each year."

The U-Pass is used by students at Carleton University, uOttawa, Algonquin College and St. Paul University. The discounted cost of the U-Pass is paid during each term of study and is included in student fees.

During the fall and winter semesters, there were approximately 74,500 post-secondary students in Ottawa who were eligible for and received a U-Pass.