Am I the only one amused by the fact that Chancellor Sean O’Keefe was the NASA Administrator before coming to the University? Don’t get me wrong – it’s quite a distinction to have the former head of the U.S. space program as our chancellor, and it certainly helps us earn the federal government’s support. But when I wait more than 40 minutes for a bus, I have to wonder if transportation is this bad at NASA.
That’s right – more than 40 minutes. And it wasn’t 5 p.m. I waited patiently this past week in Tigerland for a bus to campus, and I wasn’t too concerned when 15 minutes went by. I’ve lived in Baton Rouge almost all my life, so I’m fully aware of how awful traffic can be sometimes. When half an hour passed, however, I became incensed as the hot sun beat down on me. The bus arrived about 15 minutes later, when I was almost convinced to start walking back to campus. I joked with the bus driver about traffic when he replied, “It wasn’t that bad. I had to take my break.”
Now, I’m definitely not advocating for drivers’ breaks to be eliminated. The last thing I want is grumpy bus drivers, and after seeing what they put up with on a daily basis, they certainly deserve their breaks. Why, though, is it so hard for the Office of Parking, Traffic and Transportation to ensure all the bus drivers don’t take their breaks at the same time?
The Web site for Easy Streets proclaims, “With fewer vehicles on campus, LSU anticipates that buses will be able to remain on schedule instead of being held up in traffic at high congestion times.” Admittedly, the buses are running somewhat faster because of the road restrictions. But that doesn’t help much when buses are still piling up in front of the Journalism Building to take breaks at the same time. It also doesn’t explain why at least two Tigerland buses are parked on Highland Road near the Student Union, far from their designated route, taking a break at lunchtime, arguably one of the busiest times each day.
It doesn’t take an investigative journalist to see the problems with public transportation on this campus. Stand at the bus stop on Highland tomorrow, and you will most likely see it for yourself.
I propose we use NASA’s technology to provide faster transportation on campus. I’m sure they could provide us with an easy way to build a monorail system on campus. After all, if NASA could send people to the moon in the 1960s, I’m sure they can build a decent monorail system in 2007. With a monorail system, traffic on campus would be reduced even further. It could also help the Environmental Conservation Organization reach its goal of “solving our local air quality problems,” as organization leader Lauren Stuart said in her letter to the editor Sept. 21. Because honestly, ECO, I don’t think you’re reaching your goals right now. Forcing people to be stuck in traffic on main routes such as Highland Road and Nicholson Drive only moves the air quality problems elsewhere. I can’t imagine idling in traffic on Highland Road at 12:30 p.m. because the rest of campus is inaccessible truly helps improve the air quality of Baton Rouge.
I think it would help improve our status as a top-notch university if we move to using monorails. Promoting the Flagship Agenda is one of O’Keefe’s main priorities, and he should use his connections to improve the standard of life for students. This improvement could actually benefit students. It would be a nice change from many other University initiatives, which only serve to benefit the University’s finances and image, such as forcing freshmen to live in subpar dorms or tearing down student resources to build a parking lot for faculty and staff in a primarily residential student area.
Of course, if O’Keefe were to utilize his connections in order to improve transportation, he would be sending out the message that the University is here to serve its students. No one wants to admit that without the students, there would be no University. So please, think carefully before you decide, Chancellor O’Keefe. Do you really want people to think that of our University?
—-Contact Laura Bratcher at [email protected]