Letter to the Editor: Students must remember bus safety practices

Students+board+a+CUMTD+bus+at+Transit+Plaza.+MTD%E2%80%99s+SafeRides+plans+to+launch+its+own+app+in+August.

The Daily Illini File Photo

Students board a CUMTD bus at Transit Plaza. MTD’s SafeRides plans to launch its own app in August.

By Alexandra Carrier

With most of our attention focused on the presidential election, we forget about the small things that impact our lives greatly. As students of the University, many modes of transportation are at our fingerprints.

With winter around the corner, busing will be a very popular way of travel. Our safety should be a huge concern when riding on an overcrowded bus.

If you have yet to experience a bus to the Main Quad, it gets very tight. It feels like a ticking time bomb ready to go off. If the bus stops too abruptly or gets into a collision, there can be a domino effect of human bodies. This is a huge problem that students are turning away from.

This problem has been brought to my attention by my recent experiences. Trying to get off the bus when it is packed is quite difficult. It is hard to maneuver. You find yourself avoiding personal space just to get to your destination. A feeling of awkwardness and uncomfortableness crosses your mind.

I anticipate the one moment where I witness a horrific event. It could be a harmful crash or an awkward confrontation. Either way, there needs to be a solution to this madness.

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According to the Champaign-Urbana Mass Transit, “From the first day of hire, employees have indoctrinated with the message that Safety Always Comes First.”

Safety appears to be an important core value the company possesses. The American Public Transport Association and the Federal Transit Administration  perform safety and security audits regularly.

My question is, what would they say if they were on one of the overcrowded buses? The American Public Transport Association and Federal Transit Administration can enforce a maximum capacity for bus drivers to carry out. Time and efficiency could be argued. But what’s more important: time or our safety?

Alexandra Carrier is a freshman in Business.

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