Wednesday, June 10, 1998
The University Daily Kansan
Section A · Page 3
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Old buses get new technology with addition of card readers
KU on Wheels gets a technology upgrade with new smartcard scanners. The scanners will read the microchip on smartcards and let drivers know if a pass is valid. One scanner has already been placed on one of the two buses running during the summer. Photo by Lizz Weber / KANSAN.
By Liz Wristen
Kansan staff writer
The transportation department is installing electronic card readers in KU buses for use with the new KUID cards.
The new readers will not accept KUID cards until the fall. During the summer, students and faculty will receive temporary bus smartcards.
Upon boarding, bus riders will insert their cards into the readers.
These bus smartcards will be available in the Kansas Union banking office and can be purchased for $30. They have not arrived yet.
Nicole Skalla, transportation coordinator for KU on Wheels, said using smartcards would be more efficient than having bus drivers examine KUIDs for bus-pass stickers.
The reader will show a green light for a paid bus card and will show a red light or make a buzzing noise for an unpaid bus card.
One of the two buses in use this summer already contains an electronic card reader.
Readers are being installed on the 21 other buses that are not in service during the summer.
Hesham Albuloushi, Kuwait City,
Kuwait, graduate student, said he thought that using a smartcard to board would be more efficient.
Some students are skeptical that the new system would offer better convenience.
"I think that the new card is a good idea, but I'm not sure whether it will offer a faster means of boarding when the school year gets busy," said Yuko Koike, Tokyo.
Japan, graduate student.
The transportation department also is making other changes to the buses for the fall semester.
Bike racks will be added to five of the buses that serve off-campus routes. The bike racks would allow bus riders to bring their bikes to campus and still be able to take the bus home.
Skalla said that the transportation department hoped that this improvement would help to make the campus more bike-friendly.
In addition, Student Senate is exploring the possibility of expanding KU on Wheels into a citywide bus service. The new service would have more routes and provide bus transportation for Lawrence residents.
"I think it would be beneficial for KU on Wheels to consider increasing the number of bus routes through this program," said Kevin Yoder, student body president. "The new system would really help out students because it would give them more opportunities to travel where they would need to go throughout the city."
Summer parking permits needed
Fines up to $100 may hit students without passes
by Liz Wristen
Kansan staff writer
The parking department has sold 500 yellow permits for summer use
Two of the main campus yellow parking lots at the University of Kansas have been filled close to capacity, even after the spring semester students departed.
The two lots, located on Illinois Street and Irving Hill Road, have continued to keep summer students looking for parking spots. These lots have been filled to 90 percent of their capacity. The remaining main campus parking lots, namely stadium parking and the student lots behind Carruth O'Leary Hall, have parking for late-arriving students.
Students who have neglected to purchase a summer parking permit for their cars should be aware that violators can receive tickets ranging from $5 to $100.
"It is important for students to keep with the general rules of the parking system, and this involves following parking regulations," said Donna Hultine, assistant director of the parking department. "Basically, students need to realize that if they have a car that they want to bring to campus, they need to buy a parking permit."
Summer parking permits cost $35.
An annual permit costs $75, and a semester permits costs $45. The department has sold more annual permits, which include parking for summer, than it has sold summer-only permits, Hultine said.
Don Kearns, director of the Parking Department, said that the most frequent parking violations came from students without valid parking permits.
"Many students receive parking tickets and fines for the simple fact that they chose not to purchase a parking permit," Kearns said. "The truth of the matter is that without a valid permit, students are going to have to pay a fine for illegal parking."
Students who ignore their parking tickets will have to pay for their debts eventually.
Students with three or more unpaid, outstanding parking tickets will have their cars towed at the owner's expense. Those with less than three tickets may have their enrollment and transcripts held until the fines are paid.
One option that many students may consider is the parking garage on Irving Hill Road. The garage requires a 50 cent fee for each hour,
but for students who do not plan on spending too much time on campus, this option could be cheaper than the summer permit.
"I would recommend the use of the parking garage to students who feel that they won't spend enough time on campus to afford buying a parking permit," Hultine said. "However, for students who will be on campus a lot, the parking garage could become rather costly for them if they choose to use it instead of buying a permit."
Summer permits are available through the parking department, 1501 Irving Hill Road. Permits expire July 31, and fall parking stickers will go on sale July 15.
Anyone with questions or concerns can visit the parking department website at www.ukans.edu/-parking. The department also can be reached at kupark@parking.wpo.ukans.edu, or by phone at 864-PARK.
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