Transit Chan 3 JANUARY 14, 2004 es Spark Confusion Students who ride the bus may have noticed that the buses are a little more crowded these days. The changes to the transit routes have eliminated the-old 18 and 19 buses and replaced them with the 15. While the new route is efficient, and has plenty of connecting buses, it is far more crowded, as the load from the two old routes has been absorbed into one. The result is that during peak times, it-is now common to see buses so full that there is barely standing room. As one student commented, “I feel like I’m in Vancouver!” ‘Convenient’ new route means crowding, delays for some students With the beginning of the school year coincid- ing with one of the cold weather snaps that Prince George is famous for, it is not surprising to see many UNBC students using the Prince George Transit System. Apart from the frustra- tion that comes with the cold weather, the over- -whelming feeling apparent among UNBC stu- dents is confusion over the new developments in the Prince George Transit System. As was announced at the end of the Fall Semester there are many changes to the Bus system that have been created as a direct result of UNBC student requests. Although some of these changes remain very controversial, most students appear to be happy with the overall developments in the Prince George Transit System. Apart from the frustration that comes with the cold weather, the overwhelming feeling apparent: among UNBC students is confu- sion over the new developments in the Prince George Transit System. One of the main changes that has greatly ben- efited UNBC Students is the creation of a Semester Bus Pass. Prior to this development, regular bus patrons were paying $32.00 each month for the four month semester for an unlim- ited Bus Pass. Although these passes are still avail- able, the Student Semester Pass is a much more cost-effective option at $105.00 for the four month semester. This adds up to a saving of $23. 00 per semester, which adds up to a whopping $184.00 saving over the course of an average degree. As the primary goa] of all students seems to be saving money, this development has received rave reviews from all the people I talked to. “All students love saving money, so the new Semester Bus Pass should serve to increase bus ‘usage” states one UNBC student. The student response to the development of a semester unlimited Bus Pass has been unanimously posi- tive. The development of new Bus Routes at the expense of others, on the other hand, is a very controversial issue amongst UNBC students. The elimination of both the Eighteen and Nineteen Bus Routes continues to be a problem for some UNBC students. “I purposely rented an apartment right on the Eighteen Bus Route,” asserts a third year student “it really frustrates me that now I can only catch a bus once an hour and I have to transfer to another bus.” The elimination of these two widely utilized Bus Routes continues to cause many inconve- niences and bad feeling for students of UNBC. It is now much more difficult for students to use the services available-at the Spruceland Shopping Centre, and the Pine Centre Mall, both of which are facilities that are highly utilized by UNBC students. Although there are some students that are frustrated by the changes in the Bus Routes, other students, however, are thrilled with the new developments. It is now much easier for students to access the stores and services located on Fifteenth: Avenue and at the Parkwood Mall. It is also much faster for many students living along Fifteenth Avenuc to get to UNBC as many now do not have to transfer buses. “The new Fifteen Bus Route makes so much sense” raves one student, “I don’t know why Prince George Transit didn’t create this route a long time ago.” The new Bus Route, which runs up and down Fifteenth Avenue every half an hour, effects practically all the students attending UNBC who use the bus on a regular basis. This being the case, it is not surprising that this is one of the, most controversial develop- ments in the Transit System. Although there are some stu- dents that are frustrated by the changes in the Bus Routes, other students, however, are thrilled with the new developments. Another change in the Bus System that has been given rave reviews by UNBC students is the later routes both on week‘days and on Saturdays. As one student:states: “If you took a night class last semester and missed the last bus off of the hill at 9:30, there were no other buses going down the hill until the morning. Now you can take buses from UNBC much later, even on Saturday.” The establishment of later Bus Routes was one of the main goals of the UNBC students Your Transit Options - active in bargaining with the Transit System on -behalf of the student population. All the stu- dents who use the Bus System have these students to thank for the positive changes in the Prince George Transit System. The City of Prince George should definitely be commemorated on their consideration of the needs of the UNBC student body. Overall, it appears that UNBC students are quite pleased with the new developments in the Prince George Transit System. Although there have been several complaints about the elimina- ‘tion of the Eighteen and Nineteen Bus Routes, the overwhelming sentiment regarding the new developments is positive. It appears that the City of Prince George, along with the Transit System are listening to the needs of students. If you have any questions regarding the new Prince George Bus Routes or anything else to do with the Transit System, the phone number to contact is 563-0011. What are your choices when you want to pay for the bus? Pay $1.25 in cold hard cash! Although prices may increase soon... Buy 10 tickets for $12.50 and save nothing! Buy ride cards in increments of 5, 10, or 20 rides Buy an unlimited 30 day pass-for the price of $32.00 flat Or, buy a semester pass for $105.00, plus 50 cents for a sleeve! The mythical.U-Pass, coming from NUGSS this millennium... maybe?