6A NEWS
THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIYA KANSAN
MONDAY, AUGUST 14, 2006
TRANSPORTATION
Ridership increases cause bus system to evaluate capabilities
Gas prices put pressure on system to compensate for additional use
BY MARK VIERTHALEK
Emi Erekosima sat underneath the bus stop awning at Ninth and Massachusetts Streets one muggy morning in early July. As Erekosima waited for the bus, she watched the downtown clientele shuffle by underneath the weight of the humidity. The benches next to her were filled with fellow bus riders.
"The advantages are good because you pay 50 cents and ride it for two hours," Erekosima, a Rose Hill sophomore, said. "You can get a transfer to any other bus."
Like Erekosima, many people who don't have cars have begun to use the city bus system. However, the increase is beginning to strain Lawrence's available resources.
Cliff Galante, Lawrence public transit administrator, said ridership has risen 16 percent from a year ago within the transit system or the "T". The numbers have yet to dip or even reach a plateau.
"On a given month, it could be higher," Galante said. "There are a variety of factors. There's growing
knowledge about the system. Rising fuel costs are a definite factor."
When the system began in 2001, the buses averaged 200,000 people in one year. Galante said more than 500,000 riders have been logged this year.
Lawrence has a unique situation. From January 2005 to January 2006, the Washington D.C. public transit system reported a 6 percent increase in its ridership. The American Public Transportation Association said public transit use increased only about 1 percent nationwide between 2004 and 2005.
However, the local increase is beginning to put pressure on the bus system. People have noticed that it's not convenient to plan your life around a bus that runs on a 40-minute schedule.
Erekosima said the buses didn't come as often as she would like. She waits about 15 minutes on average. If she is going to work, she has to take an earlier bus and ends up waiting almost half an hour at her job.
Danny Kaiser, KU assistant direc-
tor of parking and transit and mem
ber of the Lawrence Transit Advisory Board, said the "T" could absorb the increase in ridership, but only for so long. Route Eight, running from campus to south Iowa and downtown, is completely full from start to finish, Kaiser said.
"Our first priority is to increase the frequency," Kaiser said. "The least frequent routes around town are the most used."
The city has also begun working with KU on Wheels for ways to take some of the increasing pressure off the system.
Riders exit from a city transit bus. The "T" system has seen a spike in ridership during recent months.
Dan Boyle and Associates Inc., a San Diego transit planner, has been hired to weigh the advantages and disadvantages of completely integrating KU on Wheels with the "T"
To encourage students to switch, Kaiser said the "T" has also begun offering a double pass for those already with KU on Wheels memberships. Students have the option of adding an unlimited use "T" pass for $25. As for integrating the systems to alleviate the building pressure, Galante said it wasn't feasible at this time.
system.
KU on Wheels runs on an 80-minute schedule, depending on classes. This is one of the main issues that has arisen as they look to integrate the systems. But before anything can be done, Galante said, the city must find
out what the people want.
"We would have to figure out how it would be governed," he said. "What do people want? Where is there room for improvement?"
Kansan staff writer Mark Vierdaler can be contacted at mvierdaler@ kansan.com.
The city expects the study to be finished in November.
Edited by Shanxi Upsdell
STUDENT SENATE
SLAB plans to cut college costs with new legislation
BY NATE MCGINNIS
The Student Legislative Awareness Board is working on two new pieces of legislation to reduce the cost of college for University of Kansas students.
Ian Staples, Lawrence senior and legislative director of SLAB, said the group is developing the Returning Heroes Education Act and a proposal for tax-free textbooks. SLAB hopes the bills will be introduced in January in the Kansas legislature.
help "to make Kansas an appealing place for people to get an education," Staples said.
Specific details of the legislation have not been confirmed yet, but SLAB is working on several variations of the bill.
One version of the Act focuses on helping out-of-state veterans who want to attend KU. This version could potentially grant in-state tuition to out-of-state veterans who agree to reside and work in Kansas for a set period of time.
as a full-time student at KU.
The other bill would help offset students' costs of textbooks and materials. According to Staples, students attending four-year public universities spent 26 percent of their total bill on textbooks and supplies during 2003-2004.
Staples is putting together a bill that would make required materials such as textbooks, electronic media and supplemental workbooks available to students tax-free in the state of Kansas.
Phil Mears, Leavenworth senior, said that the cost of textbooks cause him to share books with classmates or not purchase a class book at all.
He thinks a tax-free textbook plan would help college students.
"Because of the fact that the textbooks are so expensive, it puts the less wealthy students at a disadvantage," Mears said.
Mears said hed be more likely to purchase a textbook if it were tax-free.
Before any of the legislation can take affect, Staples must present the ideas to the other members of SLAB. After the group has discussed the legislation, it will create an issue agenda outlining what it wants to lobby for during the upcoming year. SLAB will then present the agenda to Student Senate who can either
approve or disapprove the agenda. If the agenda is approved by Student Senate, the earliest any piece of legislation could be introduced to the legislature is January when the new session begins.
Kansan staff writer Nate McGinnis can be contacted at nmcginnis@ kansan.com.
Edited by Jacky Carter