Campus buses free during summer, fall

As the days get longer and the heat index rises, students feel less motivated to walk anywhere, especially across campus. A nice way for students to beat the heat is utilizing the free campus buses. However, only the A and E routes run during the summer. \nThis fall students will also be able to ride any campus bus for free when they show their student ID. The board of trustees voted to increase the transportation fee to $49.40 per semester in order to fund this service. \nThe former fee, which was issued in 1997 by the IU \nStudent Association and put into effect in 2000, only covered free bus service for Bloomington Transit buses. The new fee was approved by IUSA in January and then by the board of trustees earlier this month and will cover the cost of all campus and Bloomington Transit bus routes for students. \n"We have been supportive of the proposition since it was initiated," said James Hosler, the manager of the campus bus service. "It allows people to ride for a lower fee than the bus passes and it allows us to provide service that will meet the needs of students."\nLewis May, the general manager of Bloomington Transit, agreed that the changes would improve the service.\n"I think it's an excellent decision," he said. "It increases the transportation choices available to students. It can only help improve the mobility for students accessing the campus area."\nThe new policy, however, will most likely cause more students to ride the buses and could cause buses to be overcrowded. Overcrowding would be a nightmare for students like senior Danielle Weisberg, who is a member of Alpha Xi Delta sorority and has no choice but to ride the bus because the distance to campus would be too far for her to walk.\n"More people would ride the bus because bus passes are so expensive," she said. "Too many people might ride the bus and buses would be filled faster."\nThe increase in ridership Bloomington Transit saw on their buses after the fall of 2000 suggests that bus overcrowding could be a problem.\n"Total ridership went from one million in 1999 to two million in 2004," May said. "(Since the fee has been implemented) it has helped us to double our ridership in a five-year period."\nThe campus bus service has recognized that this could be a problem and plans to look at its ridership patterns to determine where ridership is the highest and at what time of day this occurs. They will try to alter their bus schedules and routes in order to accommodate the heavier demand for buses, but they still anticipate first semester to be an adjustment period.\nDespite the possibility of overcrowding, students are still excited about this change because it means they will no longer have to purchase expensive bus passes that not all students need. \nJunior Bernice Darkoa, who will be living in Campus View apartments this fall and will have to ride the bus frequently, looks forward to the cheaper fee.\n"I won't have to spend $150 just to get to class," she said. "A lot of students don't have $150 to spend on a bus pass. It helps us out economically."\nThe change in policy has also brought confusion for students who signed up to purchase bus passes when they registered for fall classes. The Office of the Bursar is deleting the list of people who requested bus passes and students will not be charged. Any questions or concerns on this matter should be directed to the Bursar.\nSchedules, route maps and information are available online at www.iubus.indiana.edu.