Bus schedule stumps students

    The shuttle system at GCSU has caused some confusion among students during the first couple weeks of this school year.
    “We understand there are frustrations (among students),” said Greg Brown, manager of Parking and Transportation. “But I think we’ve got it working pretty well now that we’ve gone through the baby steps.”
    The changes have come as a byproduct of the parking face-lift implemented by GCSU this fall.
    “The new parking plan forced freshmen to perimeter lots,” Brown said. “We had to adjust the routes to get people to the Irwin Street lot.”
    Students have found some difficulty in this transition but Brown said there should not be many more changes.
    Cole Lewis, a sophomore business major, said he rides the shuttle to class because it is hard to find parking on campus.
    “I park at Bobcat and catch the shuttle,” he said. “The thing is that I don’t really know when the shuttle will come, so I get there a half-hour early.”
    The Bobcat Shuttle runs regularly Monday through Friday from 7:15 a.m. to 5 p.m., picking students up every 10 minutes and every 30 minutes after 5 p.m. The shuttle begins running every 30 minutes at 10 a.m. on weekends.
    The campus shuttle departs from the Centennial Center every 10 minutes, Monday through Friday, from 7:15 a.m. to 5 p.m.
    During normal operating hours six shuttles are run. However, after 5 on weekdays and on weekends, only one shuttle is used because of the much smaller number of students utilizing them.
    “It costs money to run these shuttles,” Brown said. “The numbers don’t justify running more than one shuttle during the less busy times.”
    Sophomore Katie Daniel, an education major, said she uses the shuttle a great deal.
    “The problem is that it takes such weird routes,” she said.
    Brown said these new routes are to provide shuttle service to everyone.
    “What about students at Bobcat who have classes at the Depot or at the dorms?” he asks. “Our job is to provide transportation to the masses. It’s not a personalized taxi service.”
    Another complaint among students is that it is overcrowded during peak hours.
    Katie Walts, a sophomore health science major, said that she uses it even though it could be less full.
    “They need to get more shuttles on campus,” she said.
    Brown said that getting more shuttles has not been ruled out.
    “It’s something we’ve already been looking into. These buses are expensive, but student’s requests are taken seriously and go to administration,” he said.
    Brown added that processes such as this take time and that the best thing students can do to get it done is to go through the Student Government Association.
    Some students do not understand the complaints of their peers.
    Chantall Robertson, a junior nursing major, said she thinks the shuttles are run efficiently.
    “I just like that I don’t have to drive to class so I don’t have to bother with looking for parking and I save money on gas,” she said. “I really can’t complain about it.”
    Brown said that all the confusion among students stemmed from some misinformation printed in the brochures.
    “It wasn’t specific about what happens after 5,” he said. “New information is being printed up, but the best way students can stay informed about any changes in the shuttle schedule is through our website, www.gcsu.edu/parking.”

Posted by Colonnade Archives on Sep 8 2006. Filed under News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry