By Eden Toth

Red River College students are worried about how a transit could effect them.

 RRC is suggesting students prepare for a strike. An email sent out to students on August 30, suggested students biking, carpool, or walk to campus if they can’t bus. 

RRC students account for around 3,000 riders.

There are a few ways transit could protest, one way is drivers not collecting fares, the other is slowing services. In residential areas slowed service could mean one bus every hour, or the route not running.

If students drive to the Exchange District Campus parking costs $14 a day or $4-$6 an hour. For the Notre Dame Campus parking is $7 a day, or $1.50 an hour. 

Around 3,000 RRC students use the bus as their main transportation to and from school. Eilysia Gauthier, 27, studying financial services, says she relies on the bus and is worried about the strike.

“I live in East Kildonan which is way over an hour walk, I would have no other mode of transportation,” she said.

The EDC provides bike racks and the Paterson GlobalFoods Institute houses a bike room for extra storage. At the NDC they have 34 bike lockers. A locker can be purchased through the campus store.

There are limited bike racks inside the EDC, so finding a place to lock up a bike during the day could prove difficult if buses stop running.

Marcus Hudon, 23, is a business administration student at the EDC, and carpools with two people to get to school every day.

“I carpool with two other people who live near me and we found a local residential parking lot for a very cheap monthly rate,” Hudon said.

Hudon added if a transit strike was to happen, he doesn’t think it would affect how he gets to school.

The email sent out by Melanie Gudmundson on August 30th highlighted late and absent policies may be subject to change if travel plans are interrupted because of the strike. 

If your transportation to school gets restricted by the strike, talk to your instructors about program attendance requirements and possible leniencies.