Many students have been complaining about the campus bus system and its drivers in regard to their attitude and safety. Although few complaints have been filed, students continue to express discontent with the bus system.
“We always have a couple of complaints every so often about a lack of stopping for students,” said John Denman, general manager of the Capital Area Transit System. “This usually happens when drivers change or switch routes.”
CATS is a service for faculty, students and University personnel to travel through the University and around the Baton Rouge area, including Baton Rouge Community College and Southern University. The buses have more than 15 different routes close to campus.
The drivers meet twice each year for training and safety provided by CATS. There are about 20 different buses that circulate around campus and more than 50 buses in the entire system. Denman said there can be two or three drivers to a bus, depending on the shifts.
“We send out supervisors if a complaint is called in, and they make sure passengers are picked up,” Denman said.
Except in extreme cases, drivers are not usually criticized for anything other than time discrepancies, Denman said. The most common complaint is a bus being either too early or too late.
“The bus system is contracted to LSU and they have to meet certain requirements,” said Gary Graham, director of the Office of Parking, Traffic and Transportation.
LSU and CATS renew a yearly contract that has been going on for several years. The parking office pays CATS more than $2 million each contract period for their services.
The contract states: “CATS will pick up and discharge passengers at locations to be mutually agreed … Operators shall be neat and courteous and shall operate all buses in a safe and efficient manner, complying with all traffic and safety laws.”
If a specific driver is reported, they are called into a manager’s office. If it is their first offense, they are let off with a warning. If the problem is recurrent or severe, the punishment can elevate to suspension, based on CATS rules and regulations.
“Sometimes it takes a long time, but the drivers have always been nice to me,” said Storey Martin, undecided sophomore.
Students said the buses are notorious for passing people waiting at stops and not always taking their designated route.
“I actually saw a driver pass people this morning,” said Jacob Koch, mechanical engineering sophomore. “I have also been on a bus ride when the driver has stopped for personal reasons, like to go to CVS and stuff.” Some frequent bus riders agree that the bus system is getting worse – it has not been discerned if it is because of the drivers or the system.
“It was better last year when you knew what time they were coming. Now it is like a question mark,” said Hunter Thompson, business sophomore. “The buses do not hold all the people, and there’s a lot of standing.”
The buses usually hold about 40 passengers, but they can hold up to 60 if some passengers stand.
“I’ve actually had to wait longer than 30 minutes before,” said Felecia Fitzhugh, business junior.
Although CATS accommodates students with services for the handicapped and to football games, they may be falling short in their daily routes to and from campus, students say. Their posted schedule is frequently inaccurate at many busy stops when students are trying to get to class.
Several bus drivers refused to comment on the present situation, stating that they were “too busy,” “on route” or did not want to talk about it.
“I take the bus from Highland [Road] to Burbank [Drive], sometimes there’s a wait but they always come,” said Rebecca Sloane, elementary education freshman.
—-Contact Gina Zanutto at [email protected]