It’s near the end of the second week of London’s transit strike and The University of Western Ontario community is pulling together to help each other commute to campus.
Students, faculty and staff are digging into their pockets for taxi rides during the London transit strike. A continuous loop of cabs circles near Alumni Hall to offer rides and drop off passengers.
But that doesn’t mean it is easy.
The pressure of arranging transportation to class and jobs, studying for exams and meeting deadlines has combined with a change in weather to add strain on students, faculty and staff.
For many, getting to class or work on time means walking, flagging down a cab, asking a friend or stranger for a ride, taking a shuttle or oiling up the chain on a bicycle to get pedaling.
Natasha Kapoor, a Business and Global Studies student at Huron University College, made plans in advance to ensure she had a vehicle during the strike.
“Word on the street was they (the transit union) were going to go on strike, so I made arrangements with my parents and they gave me a car to get through it,” she says. “It’s a hassle having to pay for parking.”
With room in her vehicle for others, Kapoor has opened up her passenger doors to friends, roommates and other students walking to campus. “If I am driving to school and I see a crowd of people, I offer rides,” she says.
“Hopefully they end the strike pretty soon before it gets cold because luckily enough I have a car, but not everyone does.”
Fourth-year Science student Joe Leong was surprised to be rewarded with a Tim Horton’s gift certificate from Parking Services for carpooling with three or more people.
Leong never gave a second thought to offering a roommate and friends a lift. He is doing the good deed “because of friendship and because they live close to me.”
But students aren’t just worried about getting to school. Those with part-time jobs are feeling the strike affect their work life.
Living close to campus has not been an issue for Alison Watson, but it was a struggle for the fourth-year English student to find a ride to work at Masonville Mall on the weekend.
“I’ve been trying to find rides or making sure I have enough time to walk,” says Watson, noting it is about a 20-30 minute walk to work. “It’s been trying to work with my boss and trying to make sure I work with someone who can drive me home. I don’t want to walk home at 9:30 at night.”
Last weekend her parents drove in from out of town to take her grocery shopping. “Getting to campus hasn’t been a problem, it’s getting anywhere else.”
The pleasant temperatures over the past week had not dampened Mike Onley’s spirits during the strike. But on Tuesday, as rain drizzled down over London, he decided to forgo his usual trek from Oxford Street and Wharncliffe Road for a dry cab ride.
“It’s been alright, the weather. I usually just walk. Today it was raining so I decided to take a cab,” says Onley, a third-year Science student.
The walk to campus takes about 15-20 minutes, which Onley says he doesn’t mind. “It gets me out of the house.
“It does suck we all voted on trying to keep the bus pass and we still lost it,” he adds.
In March, undergraduate students voted in a referendum in support of the tuition-based bus pass program.
With no end in sight for the strike, students, faculty and staff are encouraged to continue using the various programs set up to help everyone travel safely.
· Share a Ride program is a safe, online site connecting those needing rides with those who have a car and room to share.
· Flag a Ride program – Mustangs Moving Mustangs is helping those who are driving to spot those who are walking and want a ride.
· The USC’s Bike Check is keeping bicycles dry and secure in the University Community Centre gym.
· Increased frequency of the on-campus shuttle service between King’s and Brescia University Colleges is all members of the campus community.
· Campus Police have stepped up their evening patrols and Foot Patrol volunteers are available to help people get home safely.
· Western Community Vans provides rides to those living more than a 30-minute walk from campus. The weekday service stops at eight locations in north London.
Updated information is available at https://communications.uwo.ca/transitstrike/.
L-o-n-g walk home
My friends and I live in a house up past Masonville Mall, and depended almost solely on the LTC to provide us with a ride to and from campus. You can only imagine how (annoyed) we are over this strike, as we live five kilometres from campus.
One of my housemates has a car and gives me a ride Monday and Wednesday mornings and another friend takes me home Monday after night class. However, all the other times, I walk for an hour both ways, usually with another housemate, as cabs can become costly very quickly and the Western van service comes nowhere near us, which is a shame.
This is an inconvenience, not because of the walking part – I love exercise – but because it takes an hour or two out of the day. On top of that, I have been having knee problems for the past two weeks, which rules out riding a bike or jogging, rollerblades, etc. Anyways, I just hope this strike ends quickly and we can all resume our normal travel habits.
Matt Snow
Taking t(w)o wheels
Learning to ride a bike in the summer was a great accomplishment and a lifetime skill that has eventually paid off. As much as I love to commute everyday using London Transit, I have come to love biking much more as it not only allows me to get around at my own pace – not having to worry about bus schedules, but has also helped me to enjoy fresh air and appreciate nature around me.
Bolaji Adekola Adeniji
PhD Candidate, Biology
Costly rides
As a regular commuter, I have found the strike frustrating.
So far I have been lucky to find a ride to go to work. But, I have class on Wednesday night which ends at 10 p.m. I have to take a taxi home. It cost me $30. And, my ride has a class on Thursday night. I have to find a ride home every Thursday.
I don’t know how long it will last. But, I don’t like to be a burden to other people. Even my daughter, a Grade 5 student, found that the strike is frustrating. She is circulating a petition for London Transit to end the strike.
Yanti Setiawati
Volunteers efforts appreciated
I want to say my thank you to volunteers and people whom organized the van service. I live rather far from campus (it takes an hour and a half on foot to get to University Hospital), and I have early morning classes and tend to stay late till the night.
It would’ve been really difficult and expensive to attend lectures and small groups without the van service. The service cut down my walk time to approx 30 minutes. Every volunteer I’ve encountered have been genuinely concerned about students’ safety and education – I feel a deep gratitude towards them.
Lina Lee
MD Candidate 2013
Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry