<p>SEA_Tide…</p>
<p>Do some of the routes still go clock-wise and counter-clockwise? Or not?</p>
<p>When the CR started, there were 2 buses on Gold going clock-wise and 2 going counter…is that no longer the case?</p>
<p>Most of the counter-clockwise ad clockwise route combinations aka Gold I/II, Green I/II, etc. ended after the 2009-2010 school year. Blue Express was soon reinstated and as of last Monday there is also a Crimson Express, which bypasses the Hub. </p>
<p>Some of the routes make little sense. For instance, last year the Gold route made 3 circles as part of its route (around Riverside, the Ferguson Center lot, and the area formerly occupied by the Presidential [grad/married student] Apartments. Luckily, only the circle around the Ferguson remains and it offers the only bus service to the Ferguson center. No daytime routes use the bus pullout in front of the Ferguson Center. </p>
<p>Other oddities of the Crimson Ride over the past few years include no service around the Quad (fixed with the addition of the Crimson Express) and no same-bus service from the majority of residence halls to the Student Rec Center or Student Health Center. There is a rule that sick students can request that the bus drivers refrain from picking up more passengers and drive directly to the Student Health Center, but few people know about the rule. The single seat behind the driver on the older buses is designed for sick students to distance themselves from the rest of the bus’s occupants.</p>
<p>UA has a habit of paying consultants $250,000 to find solutions to things that need fixing, but with the eventual solution having even more problems. Meal plans are mandatory because a consultant said circa-1996 that UA would lose money on food service if meal plans were not mandatory for freshmen. A consultant in early 2010 looked at the long wait times between Crimson Ride buses and decided that UA should eliminate counter-clockwise and express routes in favor of more frequency. In reality, the increased bus frequency has little effect as the buses effective travel in packs after a couple hours of service (Crimson Ride buses do not operate on a set schedule) and drivers are seemingly not encouraged/instructed/allowed to manage spacing between buses.</p>
<p>Another issue is that many students are not used to riding public transportation. For example, one is never supposed to cross in front of a transit bus (school buses have different rules) unless a crosswalk is in front of the bus (most bus stops are designed to be after intersections, so this is rarely the case). </p>
<p>Having rode on many different public transit systems, there are some unique aspects of the Crimson Ride that take some getting used to. First off, drivers wait for everyone to be seated rather than putting their foot on the gas as soon as the last person crosses the white/yellow line. Secondly, it is very common for off duty drivers and friends of the driver to stand in front of the white/yellow line, despite the fact that doing so is likely a violation of Federal law.</p>
<p>There is also no Crimson Ride or 348-Ride service on Labor Day, which is confusing since there is service on the weekend prior to Labor Day.</p>
<p>How is bike parking at the school? Seems like a bike is the best bet, yet I wonder with so many students if there is a shortage of bike racks. I know that bike rental is booked up for some time.</p>
<p>* A consultant in early 2010 looked at the long wait times between Crimson Ride buses and decided that UA should eliminate counter-clockwise and express routes in favor of more frequency*</p>
<p>Really? That is silly for the longer routes. The purpose of the counter-clockwise for longer routes is so that if your destination is a few stops in the counter direction, then you don’t have to make the big circle FIRST…very time consuming.</p>
<p>The concept of having 2 buses going clock-wise and 2 going counter-clock for Gold was a good idea…it just may have needed some timing tweaking.</p>
<p>When I used to look at Transloc to see where the buses were in real-time, I would see that the two same-direction buses would often be very close together, which was nutty. I don’t know why that would happen so much and THAT is what should have been avoided.</p>
<p>I do think that parents should call Transportation and complain and offer solutions. They seem to listen to parents more than they do students. Dont just talk to someone who answers the phone…ask for one of the biggies.</p>