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Thursday, Oct. 31
The Indiana Daily Student

Contract for 'drunk bus' costs IU more than $150,000

56,265 students rode Midnight Special last year

Cheers erupted as the white and blue bus pulled into view. Some ran while others stumbled toward the edge of the sidewalk outside McNutt Quad, jostling for a good spot in line. The bus door creaked open and a small mob of students clawed their way out into the comparative fresh air of Fee Lane and out of the bus. The Midnight Special was making another run. \nIU, working with Bloomington Shuttle Service, Inc., has four buses serving three routes -- Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays -- that are intended to help students get home safely from campus locations or downtown Bloomington. Also known as the "drunk bus," the Midnight Special often serves as the designated driver for students visiting bars on Kirkwood Avenue. \nIU has a contract with Bloomington Shuttle that costs about $153,000 per year to provide late night services for the 'drunk bus', said IU Transportation Services Assistant Kent McDaniel. The buses gave students about 56,000 rides last school year, Bloomington Shuttle ends up earning about $2.70 per student ride. \nMcDaniel said, despite the cost of providing the service, the Midnight Special program was something that the IU Student Association was willing to pay for and many students supported. \n"About six years ago when IUSA decided that they wanted to push for a transportation fee, one of the things that they really wanted was this late night bus service," he said.\nIUSA campaigned for the service with the idea it would provide a safe and legal alternative to driving home while intoxicated. \nBut some students are concerned that IU is spending a lot of money on programs that only a select group use. \n"The money that is put towards that service could be better used for a service that the majority of students actually use," said Graduate and Professional Student Organization moderator Paul \nRohwer. "They're making a lot of money from \nstudent fees when some of us never even use the drunk bus." \nBut the Midnight Special is carrying more now than it was in 2001 or 2003. According to a Jan. 12, 2004 Indiana Daily Student article, 7,941 passengers rode the bus in 2001 and 33,998 rode it in 2003. During the 2005-2006 school year, 56,265 rides were given on Midnight Special buses. \nIU does not pay Bloomington Shuttle per rider but has a yearly contract with the company. \nSome students say it's unfair that they have to pay a fee that goes towards the Midnight Special when they don't use it often, or, in some cases, ever. \n"It's unfair to charge students who don't use the drunk bus, but on the other hand you can't really pick who to charge," said freshman Peter Puthenveetil. "Maybe they should charge a fair each ride instead of charging everyone"

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