Students, faculty and staff who live downtown, in the Garden District or in the Perkins Road and Stanford Avenue area will have a new way to get to the University beginning August 1.The Downtown Development District held a commission meeting at Tuesday at the Old Governor’s Mansion to discuss possible developments in the downtown area, such as the new downtown bus line, strengthening the arts and entertainment district, landscape beautifications and a continuation of the levee bike path from Laurel Street to North Street.”We are thrilled to death,” said Davis Rhorer, executive director of the DDD, about the new bus line. “There are a lot of students, faculty and staff who live downtown.”Gary Graham, director of University Parking, Traffic and Transportation, introduced the new bus line to a group of 50 or 60 Baton Rouge residents at the meeting.Graham said a study run last spring by an independent transportation consultant found an increase of faculty and students living downtown, who wanted bus service.”This is based on what students want and what students are willing to pay for,” Graham said. “Things evolve, and we shift routes to meet the changing demand.”Graham said students will pay for this new bus system as part of the transportation fee. He said the new bus line will cost between $350,000 and $400,000 for the school year.”A lot of the attraction to live in places like Tigerland and on Brightside is because there is a bus route,” said Chris Boesen, chemical engineering junior. Boesen, who is currently trying to move residences, said he would use the downtown bus if he ends up there.Graham said CATS, the local bus line that covers most of the University routes, did not bid on the new service, so the University hired First Transit. Graham hopes the new service will bring improvement.”[First Transit] is going to have technological amenities, like GPS locators,” Graham said. He said students will be able to use their iPhones or laptops to locate their bus on its route. He also said the new bus line will have an identifiable University logo, which they have not made yet.At the meeting, Rhorer presented the idea to Graham of the downtown bus service being available for Baton Rouge residents in addition to University students, faculty and staff. He also wanted the bus line to be able to bring residents to campus for special events, such as football games. He said Baton Rouge residents wouldn’t mind paying a fee to use the bus and avoid parking on campus during game days.”It’s important to make a strong link between downtown and LSU,” Rhorer said.The new First Transit bus lines will run between the new areas and campus from 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday beginning August 1.—-Contact Mary Walker Baus at [email protected]