Compass Card won’t include U-Pass at first
Posted August 29, 2013 7:14 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – Ten-thousand people will be beta-testing Translink’s Compass Card starting September 9th, but many college and university students won’t be using the new fare system anytime soon.
That’s because the discounted U-Pass is not being migrated onto the Compass Card — at least, not at first. Post-secondary students can continue to use U-Passes on transit until the full switch happens sometime in 2014.
“We will definitely be letting those customers know in advance with lots of time for the transition,” says TransLink‘s Mike Madill.
Once complete, Madill says security will be much better.
“One of the advantages of the system that we’re going to put in place is that it will help eliminate or reduce the amount of fraud involved with U-Passes,” he tells News1130, noting they are often sold on Craigslist.
The U-Pass costs post-secondary students $35 a month. UBC’s Alma Mater Society says the actual Compass Cards themselves will cost students $6, which is refunded if the card is returned with no outstanding charges.
