Today’s the day I’m going to get on the Boston University Shuttle. It’s going to happen. It’s 26 degrees outside, the wind has already blown my hat off twice, my fingers are too numb to text, and there is no way in hell that I’m going to walk over a mile to my 11 a.m. class.
I merge with the mass of students that have already collected on the sidewalk and try to position myself toward the front of the group so I have better access to the BUS’s doors. At 10:46 a.m. the bus stops in front of us, late per usual. The doors open and it is instantly a mad rush to get onto the bus. No one cares if they get a seat or if they are standing up. As long as they are on the bus, they have succeeded. Finally, with good luck and an extra push on my part, I’ve made it. I might be crammed against the doors and I might be becoming more than just friends with the stranger next to me, but at least my poor fingers will begin to defrost.
We’ve all been there – the person who is left standing on the sidewalk, slightly out of breath as the BUS drives away, packed to the brim with students and backpacks. After that, you’re left with two options: you can either face the frigid weather and walk down Commonwealth Avenue, or you can scrap up a couple of dollars and attempt to catch a ride on the famously flaky T. Neither option seems as good when compared to the free shuttle that BU offers to its students.
The problem is, the BUS is nowhere near perfect. It’s usually late and there aren’t enough of them. There are certain times during the day when there is an obvious influx of students that need to get across campus and because there is only one bus per designated time slot, there are always students who don’t make it on the bus.
West Campus and the surrounding areas of Brighton and Allston are home to hundreds of students who need to make the daily trek to the other end of campus so they can go to their classes, and because of the BUS system that is currently in place, not everyone makes it to their classes on time.
At the end of the day, there is a simple solution: add more buses to the schedule. I’m not saying that BU needs to add a BUS to each timeslot (that would just be a waste of money) but it would be safe to say that an extra bus at 10:40 a.m., which is known to be a time when a large amount of students need to get to class, would truly help the students out.
I guess for now I’ll to continue to stand at the corner and wait for the BUS as the wind nips at my nose and my fingers start to turn blue. Sounds like a good time to me.
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