Students and faculty of UW-Madison will now have more access to Madison Metro according to this year?s bus pass plan.

The new plan will now extend pass-bearers? privileges to the “L” line and will extend the free rides on all Metro busses through the summer. The “L” line provides more extensive services to campus locations the city line excludes and allows for students, faculty and staff to quickly move between parts of the campus. The summer line, a new addition to the bus passes range, will give added transportation alternatives for students and faculty attending summer sessions.

“Any bus that any student wants to ride at any time of the year can be ridden now with their bus pass,” said Rebecca Pifer, chair of the ASM Finance Committee.

The contract, recently renewed and approved by the Campus Transportation Committee, will continue to offer all students, employees and visitors of the university free-range on any Madison Metro bus throughout the year beginning August 27.

“The policy is in keeping with our efforts to reduce motor vehicle traffic to, from and on the campus,” said Rachel Martin, manager of the Try-A-Different-Mode program for UW-Madison Transportation Services. “We hope it will encourage individuals to ride a Madison Metro bus from home and then hop on the campus to get to their classes, offices or visitor destinations.”

The three-year contract will cost students about $1,383,000 per year.

According to UW Communications, Transportation Services will cover the costs for UW employees and visitors, while funding for students will be covered through the agreement between ASM and the university. It is expected that individual students will pay around $3 each from their segregated fees allotment of their tuition, whether or not they pick up and use their bus pass. In the fall of 2000, 24,597 students took advantage of the “free” bus passes and picked them up from ASM, and during the 1999-2000 academic year students took more than 1.8 million rides on Metro, making up one-fourth of the system?s total ridership.”

“[The bus contract] will provide students who work or live off campus easy transportation without owning a car,” Pifer said. “It saves people parking money and all in all it encourages alternative modes of transportation.”