Bus schedules shift
Rosie Githinji
Issue date: 6/24/09 Section: News
Madison County Transit held an open forum today for students who use the buses to get to and from their destinations.
Joe Domer, manager of planning and scheduling for MCT, presented the students with a draft schedule that included frequency changes and the service span of the buses.
"It was a meeting just to show what we have been working on," Domer said.
Domer said he is hoping the draft will improve services and took suggestions from students.
Currently the bus is scheduled to run until 11:30 p.m. depending on where people live, according to Domer. Some of the busses only run until 6 p.m., but with the new schedule they would be able to run until 9 p.m.
Graduate student Ravneet Kaur of Hyderabat, India uses the busses every day. The way the schedule is currently, students have to wait an hour to catch the bus, but, beginning in August the busses will run every half hour, according to Kaur.
"Now we don't have to wait as long," Kaur said.
Kaur requested that MCT build shelters at the different bus stop locations.
"Shelters would make it easier for us to stand," Kaur said.
Kaur said one of the problems with the new schedule is that students who live in Glen Carbon will be forced to take two busses instead of just one.
Dennis Doddigarla, president of the International Student Council, said there are a few issues that will have to be taken care of. One of the issues is how often the busses run.
Students are working on a petition to present to the MCT board to try to get the busses to run on Sunday. Because the bus does not run on Sunday, it makes it difficult for students with jobs and those who may want to come to campus to study. Another issue is the lack of shelter for students waiting for the bus during the winter months and when it rains, according to Doddigarla.
"The main priority is the schedules and the safety," Doddigarla said.
Domer will take the suggestions of the students and present them to the MCT board meeting on Thursday. He told those at the meeting he will be able to tell them the results as soon as he can after the meeting.
"We will take the comments and see if we can accommodate the services," Domer said. "Anything is better than what we have now."
Joe Domer, manager of planning and scheduling for MCT, presented the students with a draft schedule that included frequency changes and the service span of the buses.
"It was a meeting just to show what we have been working on," Domer said.
Domer said he is hoping the draft will improve services and took suggestions from students.
Currently the bus is scheduled to run until 11:30 p.m. depending on where people live, according to Domer. Some of the busses only run until 6 p.m., but with the new schedule they would be able to run until 9 p.m.
Graduate student Ravneet Kaur of Hyderabat, India uses the busses every day. The way the schedule is currently, students have to wait an hour to catch the bus, but, beginning in August the busses will run every half hour, according to Kaur.
"Now we don't have to wait as long," Kaur said.
Kaur requested that MCT build shelters at the different bus stop locations.
"Shelters would make it easier for us to stand," Kaur said.
Kaur said one of the problems with the new schedule is that students who live in Glen Carbon will be forced to take two busses instead of just one.
Dennis Doddigarla, president of the International Student Council, said there are a few issues that will have to be taken care of. One of the issues is how often the busses run.
Students are working on a petition to present to the MCT board to try to get the busses to run on Sunday. Because the bus does not run on Sunday, it makes it difficult for students with jobs and those who may want to come to campus to study. Another issue is the lack of shelter for students waiting for the bus during the winter months and when it rains, according to Doddigarla.
"The main priority is the schedules and the safety," Doddigarla said.
Domer will take the suggestions of the students and present them to the MCT board meeting on Thursday. He told those at the meeting he will be able to tell them the results as soon as he can after the meeting.
"We will take the comments and see if we can accommodate the services," Domer said. "Anything is better than what we have now."
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