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Shuttle bus rolls again
By Kevin Street
"Now UH-Clear Lake students who live on Bay Area Boulevard have a shuttle service to provide transportation between
school and their homes," said David Rachita, director of student life. "We have students that do not have vehicles who
are walking home from classes at 10 p.m. We want to help ensure that these students will make it home safely."
Students can ride the shuttle service van from various apartment complexes on Bay Area Boulevard, Metro Park and Ride,
and the Arbor, Bayou and Delta Buildings.
The reopening of the shuttle service comes one month after the closure of BayTran, a shuttle service around the greater Clear Lake area. Students were able to use the BayTran
shuttle services until the project was terminated Aug. 31.
Citing a low number of riders, the Houston-Galveston Area Council has pulled all funding for the transportation
service after one year.
"HGAC, which is the funding source behind BayTran, was unhappy with the ridership, so they decided to pull the
funding," said Patty Waldner, project manager for BayTran. "A year's time is not a sufficient amount of time to allow
ridership to build."
Since then, UH-Clear Lake has implemented its own shuttle service for students; however, not all students will be
able to use this service. The shuttle van does not have wheel chair access for disabled students.
"That was one of the main reasons that we were happy about the BayTran shuttle service; it alleviated the
responsibility of the university to ensure that all students have access to this service," said Sean Murphy, coordinator
of disability services.
Currently, the shuttle is running and will remain operational for at least the next month. Pick-ups for students are
at the building entrances and apartment leasing offices.
For more information about routes and departure times, consult the Student Life Office at (281) 283-2560.
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