In its last meeting before Spring Elections, Associated Students Legislative Council condemned a campus committee’s decision to postpone the Broida Expressway.

Leg Council demanded the replacement of Suhair Suadi, the one student representative on the committee. Suadi did not attend last week’s Design Review Committee meeting, when the final decision was made.

The long-delayed and oft-proposed bikepath would connect Broida Hall and Engineering. The DRC voted to postpone further discussion of the Broida Expressway until 2002.

DRC Chair Michael Artz said the committee needed to evaluate alternatives that would not interfere with construction of new parking lots or faculty housing.

Currently, students cannot ride their bikes between the two buildings. Instead, many choose to shorten their journey by cutting across the campus green, at the risk of getting a $77 ticket.

Off-Campus Rep Matt McMillan said almost every student is for the expansion of the existing bikepath, yet students have a weak voice on the DRC.

“Faculty, most of whom do not ride their bikes, have the overwhelming majority on this committee,” McMillan said. “We’re seeing more congestion, more accidents, and still nothing is being done. Why is that?”

Leg Council recommended Public Safety Committee Chair Courtney Ross-Tait as Suadi’s replacement. Ross-Tait said students need a voice on the committee.

“The committee has power in places you wouldn’t even believe,” Ross-Tait said. “Just the fact that you can’t learn the names of the people on the committee is disturbing.”

The resolution also called for the release of committee members’ names, e-mail addresses and access to the minutes from their meetings.

Leg Council also discussed a resolution to request that UCen Dining Services and the Faculty Club make Fair Trade coffee available to those interested. The retail price of Fair Trade products is paid directly to those who produce the product.

UC Davis, UC Berkley and UCSB Graduate Students Association have passed similar resolutions. Rep-at-Large Eneri Rodriguez said students should have the option to support Fair Trade if they so choose.

“This is something our school invests in,” she said. “If we step up and take a stance, we are directly affecting people in other countries.”

While some council members were concerned about the cost of Fair Trade coffee compared to the coffee currently used by the university, Rodriguez said that money should be a nonissue.

“The university is a huge institution,” Rodriguez said. “We can afford to spend a little more money to support Fair Trade.”

Off-Campus Rep Hagen Green said he agreed with the cause, but did not see how it affected students.

“I think this is a great cause, but I honestly don’t see how this affects UCSB students directly,” Green said. “Let’s go ahead and pass this, but let’s try to stick to student issues from now on.”

The resolution passed by a vote of 14-2-3.