Fed Bus runs again

UW’s Federation of Students learned Friday morning that the Fed Bus service will be allowed to resume operations. A FEDS news release on August 11 reported that the Ontario Highway Transport Board (OHTB) has decided “to grant Student Transportation of Canada (STC) a scheduled-service licence following hearings on July 24 and July 25 at Kitchener City Hall, in order to continue its student-run 'Fed Bus' operations at the University of Waterloo.”

Renjie Butalid, FEDS vice-president, administration and finance, says Fed Bus services will resume on September 15, following the first week of classes.

“Greyhound Canada opposed the licence application," the release continues. "Earlier this year, Greyhound filed a complaint with the OHTB on the grounds that the Federation of Students and STC had been operating the Fed Bus service illegally, in contravention with the Public Vehicles Act. At that hearing in March, the OHTB ruled in Greyhound’s favour and the Fed Bus would have ceased operations on July 31 following that ruling.

“'The Fed Bus service is an essential service to students at the University of Waterloo,' says Federation of Students president Michelle Zakrison. 'Not only is it cost-effective for students but it is also very convenient, as it drops them off at destinations not currently provided by Greyhound, such as Square One in Mississauga.'

“The Fed Bus ridership has been growing steadily in recent years, with 29,389 one-way trips taken last year alone. ... The Fed Bus runs to various destinations within the GTA such as Islington, York Mills, Downsview and Scarborough, as well as Hamilton and London. On long weekends such as Canada Day and Thanksgiving, the Fed Bus also runs to Ottawa.”

Prices are likely to rise slightly to $10 one way and $19 return (currently $9 and $17), Butalid says, but that will be negotiated with STC. He added that it would be the first price rise in 10 years and noted the pressure of higher fuel costs.

At the time of posting, Greyhound had not responded to the Daily Bulletin's inquiry.

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Library's Trellis goes down for upgrades

Trellis, the library system shared by UW, the University of Guelph and Wilfrid Laurier University, will be upgraded later this month. Trellis will be taken down at 6 p.m. on Thursday, August 17, and is expected to be available again by Wednesday, August 23.

Linda Teather, manager of library systems support services, says that during the upgrade, a link to a backup catalogue will be provided on the Library home page. The information in this backup catalogue will be current to August 16.

When Trellis is down, users will not be able to place online holds or recalls, use self-charge, do online renewals or registration, or see current loan status information. Library staff will accept requests at the circulation desk, or by email at LibCirc@uwaterloo.ca. Requests will be processed after August 23.

Other services (e.g., Interlibrary Loan/RACER, Ask a Librarian, Research Databases, Electronic Journals) accessed from the Library's web site will remain available throughout the upgrade period.

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The shape of the impossible

“Impossible Crystals” is the title of a talk by Paul J. Steinhardt that kicks off Perimeter Institute’s 2006-07 public lecture series in September. “For centuries, scientists were absolutely sure that solids . . . could only have certain symmetries — such as square, hexagonal and triangular…. In this talk, you will see simple, beautiful patterns and a series of geometrical toys and games that demonstrate, with subtlety and surprise, how this last conceptual barrier has been recently overcome — leading to new insights on how to grow perfect quasicrystals and inspire new technological applications.” Steinhardt, the Albert Einstein Professor in Science at Princeton University, is described as “one of the architects of the inflationary model of the universe” and originator of the concept of “quintessence, a dynamical form of dark energy that may account for the recently discovered cosmic acceleration.” The talk (7 p.m., September 6, at Waterloo Collegiate Institute, 300 Hazel Street, Waterloo) is free, but to get tickets it’s necessary to become a member – which is also free. All information is on the Perimeter website.

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