There are calls for post-secondary institutions to accommodate those who can't make it to class during a strike

Students are set to be among the hardest hit by the impending shutdown of Metro Vancouver's bus and SeaBus network

VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – Students are set to be among the hardest hit by the impending three-day shutdown of Metro Vancouver’s bus and SeaBus network, which is set to begin on Wednesday if no last-minute deal is reached on Tuesday.

This is prompting calls for post-secondary institutions to accommodate those who just can’t make it to class, in the event of a full system shutdown.

If it were to proceed, this would be the biggest transit disruption the region has seen since 2001. It would also come at a stressful time for students, who are just now getting into final projects and exams.

BC Federation of Students chair Tanysha Klassen said a majority have come to rely on those buses, with many students living farther away due to the high cost of living in places like Vancouver and a lack of parking available at schools.

“We’ve kind of been pushing people to take that route, right? So, there’s not the infrastructure to support people driving or even having a bunch of people carpooling to campuses,” she told NEWS 1130. “As far as we know, no schools are planning any cancellations or rescheduling, and they’re not planning any concessions for students who aren’t able to get to campus, which is a really big issue.”

She’s calling on institutions like UBC to treat the three days like snow days, so anyone who can’t make an exam can get some leeway.

“In a more general sense, we’re really hoping that the bus drivers and TransLink and the Coast Mountain Bus Company can come back to the table and figure things out so the shutdown doesn’t need to happen,” Klassen added.

On the labour front, Unifor’s National President is in town for a 2:00 p.m. bargaining session with Coast Mountain Bus Company. This comes after the union announced on Monday that its members would return to the bargaining table, to try and reach a deal.

Transit workers have been participating in job action since the beginning of November. Some have been working out of uniform while others have refused overtime work as part of their job action.

Transit commuters fearing the worst have been taking to reddit, Facebook, and other social media platforms to try to arrange last-minute carpools.

“I think on a personal level, students are definitely stressed out. This time of year is always stressful, in general,” Klassen said. “I think people are a little bit worried.”

However, she added students have been giving themselves extra time on their commutes in anticipation of longer waits.

“Since there was fair warning for this total shutdown,” Klassen admitted. “I think people are trying their best to make alternate arrangements, but people are definitely feeling that they’re sort of in a precarious situation right now, which is really unfortunate.”

For commuters looking to get around on Tuesday, there is no overtime ban in place for bus drivers, and no planned SeaBus cancellations.

-With files from Dean Recksiedler