<p>**If anyone has been following the various threads over the past few years about UA’s airport shuttle, the consensus is that the currently scheduled times are not always compatible with many of the flights.</p>
<p>I have called and e-mailed about this situation (and ask that you do as well to show interest). I have suggested changing the schedule and making shuttles available for early and late flights to accommodate our student’s needs. There are certainly more OOS students traveling further, making multiple connections or just looking to book cheaper flights. I have heard back from UA and I need to reply with some suggestions. If y’all can give me some feedback which would would help in sculpting my reply, that would be great. If you have made reservations for any upcoming breaks or know which “new” times you would like to see included, I can create a chart. Hopefully I will get lots of feedback from all of you, and I would like to reply in a timely fashion so, although I know we are all busy, I was hoping for some quick replies. :)</p>
<p>Let’s see what we can do.</p>
<p>You can just reply here in this thread. Thanks…Roll Tide~~</p>
<p>Like Chardo, we’d be interested in a shuttle that arrives at BHM in time to catch a 6am outbound flight. Inbound from Hawaii, we usually arrive between 10am and noon. Son will return from the Michigan game around 2pm, so something that would accommodate a mid-afternoon arrival would be nice.</p>
<p>Have a wonderful relationship with taxi service based on the fact that shuttles have not be amenable for those 6 am departures nor 8:30 pm (or later) arrivals. So many flights out between 6-7 am I’ve been surprised there hasn’t been a change before this. DS rather do the early flight then midday flights through Chicago (higher $ too).</p>
<p>Yes, we have had to hire private shuttles or arrange rides for those early morning planes during the past two years as well…it is expensive and a pain.</p>
<p>I will send an e-mail reply back to UA however, while you are on campus this week and next, please make mention to administrators and to the deans that this airport shuttle schedule is a big issue for your students. My input will be more effective that way. Again thanks. I am hopeful that a change in the schedule can occur.</p>
<p>We live in the Chicagoland area and use Southwest airlines.
They usually have flights leaving in the morning, anywhere from 6:00 am -9:00 am, these are typically the least expensive flights.<br>
It would be great, if there was an early shuttle for the OOS students. </p>
<p>Our choice, is to book later flights, and possibly pay higher fares, or book earlier flights and pay for private transportation.</p>
<p>hisess: In the past there wasn’t much need for these early shuttles due to the smaller OOS student population. Even now, there are many students who have cars or have access to roommates with cars. </p>
<p>I also think that in previous years, parents just purchased tickets based on when the airport shuttles were available. That was probably feasible when dealing with shorter flights. However, since the student population has grown so dramatically and since there are many more OOS students, needs have changed. The criteria is changing so the schedules should change as well. </p>
<p>From my own student’s perspective, there is a real need for early shuttles but the UA administration is not going to change the airport shuttle schedule based on one student’s needs. The University of Alabama may not be aware of our student’s needs but I am trying to change that viewpoint.</p>
<p>If parents continue to pay the additional charges for the private shuttle services and not say anything to the administration, there probably will be minimal changes. I do know that the issue needs to be addressed. I don’t know if Bama will be able to accommodate these needs or not, but we can try.</p>
<p>The earliest commercial flight out of BHM is usually the 5:30 am flight to Atlanta on Delta. The latest arrivals into BHM are usually around 10:00 pm, but are sometimes delayed. BHM is open 24/7/365 and is constantly being patrolled by police, so passengers should feel safe being at the airport late at night or early in the morning. </p>
<p>If I was scheduling airport shuttles, departure times from UA would be 3:30 am, 7:30 am, 11:00 am, and 2:00 pm. Pickup times from BHM would be 11:30 am, 3:00 pm, 7:00 pm, and 11:00 pm. These shuttle times would accommodate 90+% of flights.</p>
<p>It appears to me that shuttle times were chosen by a person who does not know airline schedules and who assumes that students are traveling short distances and have a large selection of flight times. In reality, many students are flying long distances and flying over holidays and other popular travel requires students to be very flexible in flight times in order to find reasonably-priced airfare. Countless times I have seen one-way airfares to/from BHM be $450+ each way except for a single flight, usually at a time that makes it infeasible to take the UA shuttle, that costs $250. Especially for those living on the West Coast, the UA shuttle times work for around 25-50% of flights. I’m lucky to live near an airport with many flights on almost every US airline, which isn’t the case for many OOS students.</p>
<p>A good plan of action would be to contact administrators outside of Housing. After the tornado, Transportation Services coordinated airport shuttles and worked to accommodate students with all sorts of flight times, including a group of international students who were booked on a 6:00 am flight.</p>
<p>Sea_Tide’s times would work I think for the majority. We are from the Chicago area and, while my son will have a car down at school (partly for this reason), he is not leaving it at the airport over long breaks (like Xmas - too expensive) and will be using the shuttle at times. Anything that gets him there for an early morning flight would be great. Doesn’t matter if he has to sit there for a couple of hours… Is there someone we can email to show our support for changed times?</p>
<p>One thing you have to keep in mind is that the university would have to pay their drivers to work during these times. I doubt they would find a bus driver willing to work at 3:30 AM for 10 students. If your airfare is $200 cheaper by taking the earlier flight, then you will pass those savings on to paying for a higher priced transportation to the airport. Look at the big picture, a cheap flight with expensive airport transport, or an expensive flight with cheap airport transport. Also look at your time at home, especially for these short breaks. Is it worth paying a little more so that junior can be home for 48 hours rather than 36 hours? Perhaps one of these private shuttle companies could work out a package deal for a group of OOS kids, with a cost somewhere between the university’s shuttle and the cost of a single private car.</p>
<p>^^^It is not just about the price…for instance to my airport (which is a small regional) there are not many flights per day… so money may not be the only factor.</p>
<p>You are also thinking in terms of only the replies that you see here, there are many more students who attend from OOS, who use the shuttles, then those that are posting. Last year’s freshman class was about 51% OOS. Yes, at first it could be a logistics problem in terms of cost and getting drivers but we will never know unless we try. Also judging by the lines at the airport and the full flights, I don’t think that once the airport shuttle schedule changes (hopefully) that filling it will be an issue.</p>
<p>Those who live close and have access to other transportation methods might not realize the real need for a change. True, you could buy a cheaper ticket and add on the private shuttle cost and then say that it equates to the same price but in reality it does not. When you are traveling greater distances -connections and availability of flights need to be factored into the equation. Many of the private services will not do a 3:30/4:30 pick up. Only a few will, and they charge a hefty premium. If it makes the difference between being able to afford to send your student home or not, that matters. Or if the student has to stay on campus because of financial constraints, that matters. The cost of an airplane ticket varies widely depending on where you are traveling and when. </p>
<p>As I said before, I am not sure that a change can be enacted, I can only supply the information to UA and hope that the need is recognized.</p>
<p>^^^PLEASE let’s keep this thread nice, as you said, your son is going instate, so you have no horse in this race.</p>
<p>Some of us are trying to enact a change that we see as necessary. Granted it is not life altering, but nevertheless important to these students. Financial times being what they are, every dollar counts.</p>
<p>hlsess- from the tone of your message, I too am glad you chose to send your student elsewhere. Why are you even here? We are people who chose UA for a reason. Transportation is a small part of it and a little inconvenience is a small price to pay. Doesn’t mean we can’t try to fix it. After all, UA does recruit out of state.</p>
<p>I think it is great that yall are trying to make some changes, if they are going to have transportation available it might as well work for the masses.</p>
<p>D’13 will have her car, for shorter breaks she will park at the airport and longer breaks she will drive home to FL. I am sure she will happily give rides next year :)</p>