Nearly 70% of students vote against fee hike
Last week, Bishop’s students voted overwhelmingly against the proposed Bixi bike project, which would have raised student fees by $20 per year.
In a referendum which saw a turnout of approximately 25%, 371 voted against the project, while only 153 voted for it. The remaining ten ballots were spoiled.
The project proposed was for 40 bikes situated at 4 stations on campus and in town, to which all students would have access. The initial cost for the project would have been $200 000; a student fee increase of $10 per semester was proposed as the primary method of funding.
The project was initiated and promoted by the ACE*Bishop’s group, under the leadership of President Mike Lavigne and VP Phil Vennes.
ACE is a student-run organization designed to promote entrepreneurship and create economic opportunities in the Eastern Townships. It gives students, especially Business students, the opportunity to take theoretical marketing concepts and techniques and apply them to real-world scenarios.
In response to the referendum results, both Lavigne and Vennes said they were “very disappointed.” However, the pair is approaching this setback with optimism.
Lavigne mentioned the value of the proposal process as a learning experience, and while he conceded that the project needs to be rethought to meet the specific demands of Bishop’s students, he stuck by the idea: “It’s a great project…there is a way to use this for other purposes.”
In future meetings, ACE will address the problems that led to the project being defeated at the polls.
One of the main challenges the faced was finding a source of funding. Lavigne admits that the current business model of increasing student fees does not work, and suggested that changing the model may be one solution – perhaps implementing a pay-per-use system for those who want to use it.
Both ACE executives also mentioned the issue of misinformation. They are intent on determining “why people received the wrong information,” despite numerous info sessions that were held in the run-up to the referendum.
Vennes speculated that more classroom presentations may have helped more students be properly informed.
Indeed, some of those who voted seemed to have some strange ideas about what the project would have entailed. One student believed that the project would acquire funding by “having advertising on the [Bishop’s] billboards.”
When asked about this, Lavigne assured The Campus that advertising would only be found on the bikes and stations.
The list of criticisms expressed by students is extensive. Many pointed out that the bikes would not be accessible for 4 months of the year due to Quebec’s harsh winters, and that it was unfair to expect all students to pay for a service that would be used mostly by summer students.
Others expressed concern over how an increased number of bikes would negotiate with the significant volume of cars, trucks and pedestrians already found on the streets of Lennoxville.
Bishop’s alumna Phoebe Chan commented that by “adding more bicycles through Bixi, pedestrians would need to ‘fight’ for the sidewalk and remain alert at all times against cars and bikes.”
She added that the Bixi project is not particularly suitable for Bishop’s because “BU is a very walkable campus, unlike big universities like McGill and Concordia, where buildings are scattered.”
Many students shared this perspective, claiming that most locations are within walking distance, and so they would not use the bikes. Others expressed interest in using the bike, but felt that the proposed 30 minute time limit for free use was unrealistic.
A number of students indicated that they would have no use for the Bixi project because they already own a car and/or bike. Some of these students did not feel that they should be obligated to pay for a project that they would never use.
Comments in support of the project focused on its ‘green’ aspect – that it would give people an alternative to driving, and that the parking stations were solar powered. Some believed that the system would help promote Bishop’s to potential students. One student who voted in favour of the project noted that “people here do not have cars” and “ten dollars is not a lot to pay.”
Students’ comments and votes indicate that they are careful about where their money goes. More than two-thirds of voting students opposed an increase of fees that would cost them less than a 2-4 of beer.
The points for and against this project will be taken into consideration when ACE decides how to proceed with this project in the future. Lavigne believes there is a real need for a shared bike system in Lennoxville, and that this project fits with the ACE’s mandate to “improve the quality of life” in the community. He sees the vote as students expressing “no to the current business model,” but he believes the project still has potential.
“I don’t think it should be buried forever,” he said.
