The referendum vote was 3,970 to 299 (94 per cent) in favour of adding the student pass to fees. Photo Credit: City of Hamilton.
McMaster University undergraduate students recently voted in a referendum to include access to a discounted Hamilton Bike Share pass as part of their annual fees.
Under the Hamilton Bike Share program, blue bikes located at various stations across the city are available for use under various payment plans. An app is used to unlock the bikes and pay for rides.
There are 800 bikes at approximately 130 locations in the city, with seven of those stations on the McMaster University campus.
The referendum vote was 3,970 to 299 (94 per cent) in favour of adding the student pass to fees.
Whereas a student pass for Hamilton Bike Share use is normally $16 per month ($192 per year), as part of annual McMaster fees undergraduates will be granted access to the program for $24.50 per year.
The special fee represents an 88.7 per cent discount and will reportedly be “the most affordable bicycle-sharing pricing option in all of Canada.”
Hamilton Bike Share is the local non-profit organization that has the contract to operate the City of Hamilton’s bike share system.
Uber previously operated the system, but stopped in 2020.
At that point the program faced financial difficulties, but the City of Hamilton eventually stepped in and now provides over $300,000 per year in funding.
In addition to government funding, the system is also about 50 per cent funded by user revenues, sponsorship, and donations.
It is expected that incorporating a pass into student fees will provide about $600,000 in additional revenue to Hamilton Bike Share, representing a significant increase.
A group called Students for McMaster Bike Share started advocating for the special student pass in December 2022.
As a result of their advocacy, McMaster Students’ Union (MSU) began negotiations with Hamilton Bike Share and a tentative agreement was reached in January 2024 regarding the cost of such a pass.
The pass will be applied to student fees starting in the September 2024 fall semester and will be available for full-time undergraduate students.
Under the system, students will be able to ride any of the bikes for 90 minutes each day.
It should be noted that students can opt out of the pass if they wish at the beginning of the school year.
Based in Hamilton, he reaches hundreds of thousands of people monthly on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter. He has been published in The Hamilton Spectator, Stoney Creek News, and Bay Observer. He has also been a segment host with Cable 14 Hamilton. In 2017, he received the Chancellor Full Tuition Scholarship from the University of Ottawa (BA, 2022). He has also received the Governor General’s Academic Medal. He formerly worked in a non-partisan role on Parliament Hill in Ottawa.
