Saturday, April 20, 2024

Spooky CATA stories to send shivers down your spine

October 25, 2018
<p><strong>Photo illustration by Daena Faustino.&nbsp;</strong></p>

Photo illustration by Daena Faustino. 

Riding the bus can be horrifying, to say the least. Tricks and treats await you at every twist and turn of the route. In the spirit of Halloween, here are some of the most spook-tastic experiences students have had with the Capital Area Transportation Authority.

Sweet Relief

While riding the Route 1 bus — an adventure not for the faint of heart on a bone-chilling day in December — human biology sophomore Hannah Baker witnessed a man satisfy his bodily needs in public for all to see. Things became extremely messy, to say the least. 

“We were sitting on this bus, just chilling. This man stood up, pulled his pants down and started peeing,” Baker said. “It started rolling down the bus and people were stepping in it.”

End of the Line

When technology fails, most people say the object as “a mind of its own.” Journalism freshman Stephanie McCullum witnessed this firsthand on her commute around campus one day. 

The incident she witnessed begs the question: Was this just a simple battery or engine failure, or maybe something more sinister, like a being from the great beyond? 

“I remember this one time I was on the bus and it shut off in the middle of the road and the lights started to flicker,” McCullum said. 

No Mercy

Whoever said common decency is dead may have been right. While this story may not send shivers down your spine, the lack of respect will. 

Freshman Victoria Davis-King shared a terrifying social faux-pas she witnessed on the bus. 

 “A girl with crutches got on, and not one guy gave up his seat for her. The horrors of chivalry being dead,” Davis-King said.

For Crying Out Loud

Another shocking tale from the Route 1 bus proves it might be the spookiest of the CATA system. Computer science freshman Pookie Khounsombat witnessed a couple whose poor hearts couldn’t bear the long trip back from the Meridian Mall. 

“There was a couple and another woman who got on after me. They all sat separate from each other,” Khounsombat said. “All of sudden, the man comes and sits next to his girlfriend and they start bawling full-force tears on the bus. The other woman goes, ‘Guys, stop it! You are in a public place right now.’ And they kept crying. He was rubbing her leg, and she kept trying to push him away.”

Support student media! Please consider donating to The State News and help fund the future of journalism.

Discussion

Share and discuss “Spooky CATA stories to send shivers down your spine” on social media.