Once again SamTrans is raising the fare prices, this time by 25 cents.

The fare hike may not affect all of the student body but there is a great deal of students who rely on the bus every day to get to and from Skyline. What does this mean for them? Per ride, students will have to cough up an extra quarter from what they are used to paying, and instead of the usual $1.25 loyal bus riders used to pay they will now have to pay $1.50. And that’s not the only thing that’s going up in price; youth fare is raised to an even dollar, the adult monthly pass is raised $48, and the youth monthly pass has increased to $29. These fare increases were made effective on Sept. 1, by the board that is in charge of public transit for San Mateo County. The price increase may not sound like a gargantuan amount, but after a few pleasant commutes, this extra cost will add up.

For second year, Skyline College student, Kevin Niduaza, who has been taking the bus for the last year, has just one thing of say about the fare hike

“It really sucks, but you got to do it”. On a daily basis Kevin has to take two to three buses and has to commute from South San Francisco, Skyline, and Millbrae causing him to cough up over $5 dollars a day. Not only does he have to worry about catching the bus on time and having to wait countless hours every week at the bus stop, but now he must tap his wallet just to get around. This is the plight of countless Skyline students who are asking “Why do I have to pay extra after paying an already pricey fare cost?”

Much of the information for the fee hike can be found on the price board for your local gas station. Prices for diesel fuel have skyrocketed to a staggering amount in the last few months equivalent to the regular gas prices. Both are now at a record high $3.00 which has gone up about a dollar from the already high $2.00 plus prices.

One possible cause for this drastic increase is the devastating damage Hurricane Katrina unleashed on Louisiana and the surrounding states. Many of America’s off shore gas drilling stations were destroyed by the biblical storm forcing another blow to the United States gas supplies. A SamTrans executive said that the fee hike

“Would not even make a dent in the outrageous prices we will have to pay for diesel fuel.” SamTrans has other options to compensate for the cost of fuel such as decreasing the number of running buses at one time. But with public transit already packed as it is, and with passengers sometimes having to wait ridiculous amounts of time for the buses the fee hike is the most painless means of compensation for both the company and consumer. All things considered it is still cheaper than maintaining a full gas tank for a car.