Report
to/Rapport au :
Comité des services de transport en commun
and Council / et au Conseil
17 July 2009 / 17 juillet 2009
Submitted by/Soumis par : Shawn
Ménard, Vice-Chair/Vice-Président
Pedestrian and Transit Advisory Committee/
Comité consultatif sur les piétons et le transport en commun
Contact Person/Personne ressource : Christopher Zwierzchowski,
Advisory Committee Coordinator/Coordonnateur du comité consultatif
City Clerk
and Solicitor’s Department/Direction du Greffier municipal et chef du
contentieux
(613)
580-2424, ext./poste 21359 , Christopher.Zwierzchowski@ottawa.ca
SUBJECT
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OBJET
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limites sur les âges des étudiants pour les laissez-passers d'autobus |
That the Pedestrian and Transit Advisory Committee recommend that the Transit Committee recommend that Council reverse its recent budget decision on age limits for student bus passes as expeditiously as possible.
Que le Comité consultatif sur les piétons et le
transport en commun recommande que le Comité du transport en commun recommande
que le Conseil revienne aussi rapidement que
possible sur sa récente décision budgétaire concernant la limite d’âge pour les
laissez-passer d’autobus pour étudiants.
At the Pedestrian and Transit Advisory Committee
meeting of 16 July 2009, a number of presentations were
made by representatives
of the Student Federation of the University of Ottawa, the Carleton University
Students’ Association, the Graduate Students’ Association of the University of
Ottawa and others, in opposition to Council’s decision to cap the age of
students eligible to purchase student bus passes. Delegations asked that the Pedestrian and Transit Advisory
Committee listen to their concerns and in turn ask Transit Committee to
recommend that City Council overturn its decision to cap age limits for
post-secondary education students.
The main concerns and objections noted by the
delegations in attendance were as follow:
Ø The Council motion is
based on outdated and culturally biased notions of a “normal progression”
through university that sees students completing their education by 28 years of
age;
Ø The nature of university
and the age of its students has changed in the last 20 years - students are
returning to advance their education later in their careers;
Ø The costs for older
students is the same as, or more than, for younger students, when
considering additional family and adult responsibilities;
Ø It is stereotyping to
assert that age affords intrinsic advantage to students’ financial capacity;
this sends a message that university students are second class people.
Ø The age restrictions affect a vulnerable segment of the community;
Ø The cap set is unfounded and arbitrary;
Ø The decision has environmental consequences, encouraging a greater reliance on cars;
Ø The decision will result in additional expenses to students, will serve as an additional barrier to accessing education and will prompt greater student poverty.
It should be noted that on 1 December 2008, Council approved the following Motion in a 19-5 vote:
WHEREAS City Council has previously recognized the income
restrictions most post-secondary students face by establishing a Student Bus
Pass at a discounted rate;
WHEREAS OC Transpo provides a Student Bus Pass (2008 regular monthly
price: $62.65, express monthly price: $73.40) for approximately 60,000
full-time registered students at post-secondary institutions, with no age
restrictions;
WHEREAS the OC Transpo budget contemplates capping the age
eligibility for the Student Bus Pass at age 24;
WHEREAS a student graduates from high school at 18 (kindergarten
starts at age 5, then 12 grades afterwards), and the normal progression through
university is 4 years for a Batchelor degree, 2 years for a Master's degree and
4 years for a Doctorate, leading to graduation normally at age 28;
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that Council approve an age cap of 28 for
the Student Bus Pass (i.e. the Student Bus Pass is eligible for registered
full-time students age 27 and younger), effective for the 2009-2010 academic
year, for a revenue increase of $110,000 for 2009 ($220,000 annual thereafter).
CONSULTATION
Transit Services
The 2009 OC Transpo Marketing Plan outlined a number of objectives, including an extensive review of transit markets, products and pricing. One important objective endorsed by City Council was the achievement of a transit revenue / cost ratio of 50 per cent.
While reviewing the revenue / cost ratio structure, staff determined that the student bus pass eligibility parameters were negatively affecting the 50 per cent goal.
In the examination of Ottawa demographics, with respect to age and
income, the discounting of OC Transpo student transit passes was determined to
be significantly more generous in its age limit provision, which previously had
been 64.
As well, in comparison to transit fares established for similar market
segments throughout Canada, OC Transpo was providing a significantly higher age
cap. In contrast, the Société de
transport de l'Outaouais (STO) in Gatineau limits student eligibility to 21 years of age. In Winnipeg the age cap is 21 and Montreal
25. In Toronto, transit fare discounts are not offered to post secondary
students, so the effective age limit is less than 20 years.
The review of income levels revealed that the need for transit fare
concessions is considerably less for people over the age of 24. A revision of
the age limit for the eligibility transit student fare discounts was also based
on the ability to achieve PhD status by the age of 28. Furthermore, at age 28
and beyond, full time students in this category of age represented a much
smaller population in the overall mix.
In terms of public consultation, the 2009 OC Transpo Marketing Plan was
discussed with Pedestrian and Transit Advisory Committee (PTAC) representatives
in the Fall of 2008. This consultation
included the recommendation to set the full time student age limit at 24 years
of age; however, Council approved an age limit of 27 years or younger.
Discussions also took place with student leaders and staff from the University
of Ottawa, which is the institution with the largest student population
affected by the policy change.
The revised age limit of 28 for full time students will result in a
savings of $220,000, which is realized by reducing the annual loss in revenue
that results from discounting the passes.
Eliminating the age cap could result in a small price increase in the
student pass for the majority of students, rather than a fare increase for the
small number of students over the age of 28.
Accessibility
Advisory Committee
Elimination of the revised student age limit will also eliminate the
estimated annual savings of $220,000 resulting from reduction of the
discounting of student passes.
As this is a request for reconsideration of a motion already adopted by City Council and implemented by Transit Services, a three quarters vote of members of both Committee and Council will be required to waive the Rules of Procedure, and to address this issue.
Should the Committee agree to waive the rules, it could then refer the recommendation to the 2010 budget deliberations.
As part of its budget deliberations in December 2008, City
Council endorsed an age cap of 28 for student bus passes for OC Transpo, to be
implemented for the 2009-2010 academic year.
During consideration of the motion that is the subject of this report,
questions have been raised as to whether the implementation of such an age cap
is a violation of the Section 15(1) equality guarantees of the Charter of
Rights and Freedoms and/or the Canadian Human Rights Act, both of
which prohibit adverse differential treatment on the basis of age.
In looking at the issue, regard must be had for Section
15(2) of the Charter, which states that any law, program or activity
whose object
is the amelioration of conditions for disadvantaged individuals or groups will
not violate the protections enshrined in s. 15(1), including those based upon
age. As the Council motion adopting the age cap expressly recognizes
that the City has made available reduced fares for students in light of the
income restrictions they face, noting also that the normal progression through
the post-secondary education system would see a student graduating from a
doctoral program by the age of 28, Council’s decision does not constitute a
breach of the Charter requirements.
Consideration must also be had to the greater entitlements
found in the federal Canadian Human Rights Act. That Act clearly states that adverse
differential treatment on the basis of age is normally not permitted. However, legislative Guidelines made
pursuant to the Act state that differentiation in the provision of
services to the general public based only on a reduction of rates, fares or
charges with respect to children, youths or senior citizens is reasonable and
is not a discriminatory practice within the meaning the Act. It is as a result of these Guidelines that
various fare regimes across Canada are able to offer reduced rates based on
age, including seniors and youth. Based
on the Guidelines, the age cap for student passes does not constitute a
violation of the Canadian Human Rights Act.
As Council’s decision to limit the availability of
discounted student passes to those under 28 does not appear to contravene any
applicable law relating to age discrimination, Council is not under a legal
obligation to reverse its December 2008 decision.
Document 1 – Extract of Draft Minute, 16 July 2009
Should Transit Committee and Council support the recommendation contained in this report, staff will proceed to implement the recommendation as directed by Council.
DOCUMENT 1
student age
limits for bus passes
Limites sur les âges des
étudiants pour les laissez-passers d'autobus
Vice-Chair S. Ménard asked that this item be added to PTAC’s 16 July 09 agenda to allow several of Ottawa’s academic institutions to address this matter before PTAC, and to give student representatives the opportunity to voice their concerns about what effects the imposition of an age limit restriction or ‘cap’ would have on their lives.
PUBLIC
DELEGATIONS
Mr. Rajiv Prasad - Referencing a
prepared statement (held on file with
the City Clerk's office pursuant to the City of Ottawa Records Retention and
Disposition By-law),
Mr. Prasad voiced
his opposition and dismay that full-time post-secondary students over the age
of 28 would no longer be eligible for OC Transpo passes at the student
rate. He viewed this as discriminatory,
predatory, based on convenient and questionable reasoning, and did not serve
the overall public interest. He
believed the policy should be reconsidered and repealed before the start of the
2009-10 school year.
His concerns are
summarized as follow:
Ø The Council motion is
based on outdated and culturally biased notions of a “normal progression”
through university that sees students completing their education by 28 years of
age;
Ø The nature of university
and the age of its students has changed in the last 20 years - students are
returning to advance their education later in their careers;
Ø The costs for older
students is the same as, or more than, for younger students, when
considering additional family and adult responsibilities;
Ø It is stereotyping to
assert that age affords intrinsic advantage to students’ financial capacity;
this sends a message that university students are second class people.
Mr. Rajiv questioned how
Council and OC Transpo reconciled the new policy with their obligations under
the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, as he noted Section 15
of the Charter specifically prohibits discrimination on the basis of
age, and the Supreme Court of Canada has upheld this principle. He further noted that in 2002, the Ontario
Human Rights Commission’s report on Human Rights and Public Transit Services in
Ontario stated that there is a legal obligation under the Code for equal
access to public transit services without discrimination based on prohibited
grounds such as age. Mr. Rajiv pointed
out that OC Transpo was listed as having provided input for this report.
Mr. Seamus Wolfe, President, Student Federation of the University of Ottawa (SFUO), circulated a letter on behalf of the SFUO, the Carleton University Students’ Association (CUSA) and the Graduate Students’ Association of the University of Ottawa (held on file with the City Clerk's office pursuant to the City of Ottawa Records Retention and Disposition By-law). The salient points touched on the following:
Ø The age restrictions affect a vulnerable segment of the community;
Ø The cap set is unfounded and arbitrary;
Ø The decision has environmental consequences, encouraging a greater reliance on cars;
Ø The decision will result in additional expenses to students, will serve as an additional barrier to accessing education and will prompt greater student poverty.
Mr. Gaetan Beaulière, External Commissioner, Graduate Students’ Association of the University of Ottawa, added that it was a false assumption that such an arbitrary age cap would affect only a small group, noting that the age cut-off would affect roughly two-thirds of PhD students, who suffered financial constraints similar to those of their younger counterparts. He echoed Mr. Wolfe’s assertion that this would have a negative environmental impact, as an increasing number of students would find alternate means of personal transportation. He further pointed out that the projected savings would represent only 0.1% of OC Transpo’s overall budget.
Mr. Johan Montminy, student, argued that although the Human Rights Act (HRA) allowed for exceptions to be made for children and seniors, OC Transpo’s age cap of 28 for students was disallowed under the HRA. He added that Toronto and Montreal had set a precedent in instituting caps, but were not following the provisions of the HRA, but rather Provincial human rights provisions. He stated that OC Transpo fell under the purview of the HRA, and not that of the Province.
Mr. Frank Dasilva explained that he was returning to school at 51 years of age as vocational rehabilitation following a career in the military. He said an increase in the cost of a bus pass would adversely affect his personal budgeting, as he was currently working, and supporting his family. He cited that other large cities, i.e., Edmonton and Halifax, had no age caps in place for students, and he did not believe staff had sufficiently justified the reasons for the imposition of such a cap.
Correspondence was also received from Mr. Allan Rock, President
and Vice-Chancellor, Ottawa University, and Mr. Zachary Fouchard, Vice
President, Internal, Saint Paul University Student Association, echoing the
above. This correspondence is also held on file with the City Clerk's office
pursuant to the City of Ottawa Records Retention and Disposition By-law.
Vice Chair Ménard acknowledged that the City was in a difficult financial situation, but stated that Ottawa currently had one of the most expensive transit systems in Canada. He felt it was important for schools to come together to assert their views, and that these views should be acknowledged by the Pedestrian and Transit Advisory Committee. He also pointed out that this fee increase had not been discussed by Council in detail, but had been part of an omnibus motion passed during the previous budget cycle. He felt it was important for this decision to be revisited and reversed. He then moved the following for Committee’s consideration:
Moved by S. Ménard
Whereas students are one of the most disadvantaged
populations in the City of Ottawa and graduate with an average of $25,000 debt
in Ontario;
Whereas the intent of allowing student
discounts was to recognize the financial
vulnerability of students, and students' practical burdens are similar
regardless of their age (i.e. tuition, books, expenses, loans/debt), the new
policy is regarded as an arbitrary discriminator;
Whereas the initial assumption of
a 'normal' progression in conducting and finishing a PhD was badly flawed and
factually inaccurate;
Whereas part of the rationale for
the decision taken was that those who are more able to pay should pay more,
when in fact full time university students will pay more for a bus pass than
fully employed and well salaried private and public sector workers, who get a
discount rate for OC Transpo services via their Ecopass;
Whereas Section 15 of the Charter
of Rights and Freedoms specifically prohibits discrimination on the basis age,
and the age cut off does not appear to be based on any substantially pro-social
or recognizable affirmative action reasons;
Therefore Be it Resolved that the
Pedestrian and Transit Advisory Committee recommends that Transit Committee
recommend that City Council reverse its recent budget decision on age limits
for student bus passes as expeditiously as possible.
CARRIED
Action: Advisory Committee Coordinator to draft report forwarding above motion to Coordinator, Transit Committee, for consideration by Transit Committee at its meeting of 01 September 2009.