Megan Muccillo
New Fleet of Campus Buses Now Complete
The Georgia Southern community seems to be quite pleased with its new fleet of buses. The final
two additions arrived on campus and completed the new fleet this Tuesday – three days ahead of
schedule – after much anticipation from students and faculty alike.
Numerous problems plagued the old bus fleet. Students complained that they were excessively
hot, overcrowded, and breaking down. Also, headlines were made last year when one of the
buses caught fire due to an electrical problem with one of the headlights.
“I think the new buses were necessary, especially since one of them was ‘blown up’ last year,”
said sophomore Pre-Business major Carly Flom.
In an effort to prevent any more hazardous incidents, measures have been taken to ensure the
stability of the new fleet.
“The new fleet has been taken through Altoona Testing,” said Kristi Bryant, Director of Parking
and Transportation. “This test illustrates the projected life span of the bus. Our new fleet is
expected to last for 12 years or 500,000 miles – whichever comes first.”
In addition to being more stable, the new buses are also more environmentally friendly. These
buses run on biodiesel and burn about 20 percent cleaner than the old buses. “This operation
costs about $250,000 per month to run, so you can easily see how expensive it is to operate. We
do not receive any state funding for our operation,” Bryant said.
This cost is made even more difficult to manage since none of the money from the new “green
fee” that students voted in this past fall goes to transportation. Instead, the Student Government
Association voted in favor of a $3 per semester increase in transportation fees to cover additional
costs of the new fleet, Bryant said.
Nicholas Grovogel, senior Construction Management major, likes the eco-friendly improvements
of the new fleet and said he doesn’t mind paying the additional $3 per semester.
“It helps the environment around the school so I can say my money is going to something
useful,” said Grovogel.
The new buses also include more standing room, improved air conditioning, and the handicap
accessibility of each individual bus – just over half of the buses in the old fleet were handicap
accessible.
“They should all be handicap accessible,” said Seth Schaneman, junior Information Technology
major, adding that he also did not mind the increase in transportation fees for these
improvements.
However, not all GSU students use the transit system. Jeffrey Hammond, junior History major,
does not ride the buses and is not a fan of any increase in fees.
He said he would like for Georgia Southern to “do anything that cuts down on my costs, seeing
as I haven’t been on a bus in over a year.” Hammond also added that the new buses might not be
necessary since “people should stop being lazy and walk [to class].”
However, some students such as Jarred Sturm are not as willing to give up that luxury.
“The buses help me be lazy and get places faster,” said Sturm, a sophomore Chemistry major.
Though not unanimous, the general consensus of students interviewed seemed to be that these
new buses are a very welcome addition to our campus.
“They seemed a lot cleaner, smelled nicer, were easier to get in and out of, and seemed to have
more room,” said Flom, “I was quite impressed.”