<p>^^^ Thanks for your support! Yes, i know in the scheme of things this is not a major concern, but as the university continues to recruit heavily from out of state, we may as well try to address the issue.</p>
<p>I am compiling some data on flights leaving Birmingham during this year’s break/holiday times. I will get back to y’all as soon as I finish packing :)</p>
<p>^^^Please, I did not mean to sound insensitive to your situation. Just trying to ease the frustration. We also use the airline and shuttle to transport son to and from, so I also have a dog in the race. There seemed to be a lot of small shuttles running around campus last weekend when we moved son out from summer school, so perhaps there will be a chance that more shuttles will be added. I’ll be happy to add any travel data to your survey as well if it would help out.</p>
<p>UA already employs drivers to work overnight with 348-RIDE and the 348-RIDE Express buses. As I’ve seen most of those drivers also drive buses, I would think that they all have CDLs. UA’s contract with First Transit allows for 24/7 service, so I don’t think that UA would have an issue finding employees to drive late night/early morning shuttles.</p>
<p>I chose UA in part because flights and shuttles appeared easy to come by and have worked around shuttle times. It hasn’t always been easy, but it’s been memorable and allowed me to visit a lot of airports. </p>
<p>Overall, it is not as difficult to get to UA from BHM as it is to get to some colleges from the nearest airport. Sure it isn’t as easy as getting to UNLV (right across the street from McCarran Airport and next to an In-N-Out Burger), but it’s not nearly as difficult as getting to some colleges/universities, particularly those in rural areas.</p>
<p>Of course none of this is a complaint about the university, I work tirelessly to educate my area residents and others about my favorite place, The University of Alabama and all the opportunities there.</p>
<p>There are local colleges and universities in my area that are difficult to access without a car. This is not about complaint, it is about improvement and making the available flights more accessible. It would be a moot point if the flights were only midday to early evening. Again for those who do not recognize the need, then I guess you are happy with the current schedule and it suits you fine, and that’s okay. If you live close to campus or within a short flight distance, it probably does not even occur to you that traveling can be both difficult and less expeditious when your home is more than 4,000 miles away (like some of our Hawaii students). However, if one cannot get their student home in a timely fashion to make a holiday visit possible then it becomes important. Change can be good and can keep the university competitive in the other aspects.</p>
<p>SEA_tide: Thanks for all the info… I also believe that the bus shuttles could be made available throughout the timespan needed.</p>
<p>Montegut: No frustration…only concern and planning (especially for future students).</p>
<p>My son will be attending Bama- we are from the state- those of us in Alabama would love to know why you send your kids so far away… what is it that you see here that you can’t get at home?</p>
<p>is it the cost/amount of scholarhsip $$/better education/professors ?</p>
<p>I’d rather my son go somewhere smaller but he is adamant about going to Alabama- he will not get a scholarship so i am paying for it- Tuition is covered though luckily…</p>
<p>^^^not to be rude, but there are many “why” threads. I really need the input that this thread is providing, so I want to keep it on target. You can start another thread or look up some old ones about the university’s attributes and what attracts students.</p>
<p>I am sure your son will have a great college experience. I did not realize that you were instate for Alabama.
Roll Tide :)</p>
<p>Please don’t speak for all of “us in Alabama”. I for one am glad so many students from out of state are attending!</p>
<p>I fully agree that we should ask the university to look at the shuttle schedule and see if a change be made. When my DS and I visited UA we were assured by several advisors that the shuttle schedule would get my son to the airport There is a misconception in this thread that the shuttle needs to be changed to get a cheap flight. The flights that my son have to choose from are not cheap but normal priced. I am not complaining about the airfare, i expected that part. It would be wonderful to have a shuttle in time for a 6 am flight home and have a shuttle back to campus for 10 pm arrivals. I do not have a choice on the airline schedule and the flights. UA is a wonderful university and I hope they consider making it easier for their students to get to and from campus. If you think it will help I will call UA also</p>
<p>bumping~~~</p>
<p>@robotbldmom - We are a “prospective” OOS family. I for one truly appreciate this thread. Other OOS have been knocked off the list due to logistics.</p>
<p>No direct flights for us. Travel time varies between 4 hrs to 9 hrs. We know if he chooses Bama airports will become a big part of his experience. </p>
<p>Bama logistics will be part of any tie breaker decisions for my son come April.</p>
<p>Late shuttles from Bama would be a huge boost.</p>
<p>I haven’t forgotten this thread and I will be checking in over the next few days although, I will be Travelin’ Down South…</p>
<p>Bumping for questions and additional comments</p>
<p>I have to agree with everyone else. Earlier shuttle times especially on the day after the classes are done. My son had the luck of having classes late on the last day that classes were held so he could not leave until the morning. There was only one shuttle and if I remember correctly it might have been 9AM. Way to late for morning flights. It seems the shuttle times assume most kids are leaving 2 days or so before classes end.</p>
<p>Thanks for rounding up this info.</p>
<p>^^^Definitely has to be an earlier morning shuttle for first day of break, as kids do have late afternoon classes and have to wait to fly out the next day. With airport security requiring you to arrive two hours before your flight, and UA being an hour away from the airport, you need a shuttle three hours before your departing flight, ideally. While I’m sure most kids have to forego a flight home during breaks because of the logistics with the shuttle, when kids are forced to leave the dorms at Christmas break and Spring break and even move out, there definitely needs to be more airport shuttle availability. Just looking at the bid thread, and the number of OOS students evidenced by those numbers, I would say there definitely is a need for airport shuttles.</p>
<p>Thanks everyone for the input…</p>
<p>I am in agreement for both an earlier morning shuttle and also a later night shuttle upon the last day of return from break. Considering possible volatile weather conditions, what does happen when a plane is delayed hours and arrives past the last shuttle?</p>
<p>I asked that question to the shuttle people and in a case where the flight was delayed the student would have to arrange their own transportation. They are not tracking your flight and do not require that information when booking.</p>
<p>BamamomfromNY, did they say if you get a refund then? Just curious. Before anyone gets in an uproar, like it seems to happen lately, I understand the shuttle is going anyway and it would be the student who didn’t get on it, etc. But that being said, if a private shuttle is more flexible and can be adjusted to the flight schedule, something to consider.</p>