It’s no surprise that as the temperature drops, so does the amount of students who are willing to walk to their classes.
Rather than trekking across campus in the frigid climate, some students opt to ride the Capital Area Transportation Authority buses to class. While this increase in bus crowding can be irritating to students having to stand for the duration of their bus journey, it also causes frustration and anxiety among riders who depend on the buses to get them to class on time.
In her experience, kinesiology freshman Mallory Jackson said the buses become the most crowded at 9:30 a.m. and noon.
“Everyone has 10:20 (a.m.) and 12:40 (p.m.) classes, and so they’re just packed,” Jackson said.
This overcrowding can cause students to be late to class because the buses won’t pick up passengers once they reach a certain capacity. No preference freshman Rachel Beck, who lives in Brody Neighborhood, shared the frustrations that come along with living on the outermost edges of campus when the buses are full.
“Everyone starts crowding around ... and it just drives by us,” Beck said. “It happens up to four times in a row sometimes, so I’ve been late to almost every single class this semester.”
While they understand the student’s frustrations, CATA bus drivers emphasized that while timeliness is important, safety is the No. 1 priority.
“I won’t let students on the bus past the yellow line (painted in the front of the bus). That’s a federal safety regulation,” said Tim, a bus driver who declined to give his last name.
He said that while crowding might be “slightly more severe in the winter, you can’t necessarily make that claim without examining data.”
Once students make it on to the crowded buses, the close quarters bring up a whole new round of issues.
“I don’t necessarily feel unsafe, but ... I’ve been worried that I’m not going to be able to get off of the bus in time, that they’ll shut the doors before I can get off,” Beck said.
Beck said she has begun walking to class more often as a result of the overcrowding.
Arts and humanities freshman Claire Gombosi agreed with Beck and said the buses are “definitely more crowded in the winter than in the fall.”
