Posted on: Tuesday, February 19, 2002
EDITORIAL
Free bus rides may unclog campus traffic
Traffic can be the bane of campus life, what with the noise, exhaust fumes and fierce competition for parking spaces. So there's something undeniably attractive about Honolulu Councilman Duke Bainum's proposed deal to allow O'ahu college students to ride free on city buses.
Why should students get a free ride, you might ask. Anything that reduces our hell on the highways is worth serious consideration. In the movies, universities are portrayed as pastoral havens swarming with cyclists and pedestrians, not carbon-monoxide-spewing automobiles. Why not have life imitate art?
Under Bainum's newly introduced measure, city transportation officials would negotiate with O'ahu colleges and universities to pay an annual lump sum that would enable their students to ride TheBus by showing a university ID card. Similar plans have been embraced on the Mainland, where all or part of the cost has come out of student or parking fees.
Such a program, of course, shouldn't penalize those who are forced to drive because they live in remote areas or have to dash from class to jobs that are off a public transit route. Still, more bus riders means more parking spots, so everyone wins.
Besides, one has to wonder why so many college-goers are willing to navigate heavy traffic only to spend at least 15 minutes looking for off-street parking, particularly around the University of Hawai'i, Manoa. As for parking on campus, a daily pass at UH-Manoa costs around $3 and annual fees can exceed $300.
A common complaint at UH-Manoa is that the bulk of students are commuters who desert the campus as soon as their lessons are over. UH President Evan Dobelle wants to build more dormitories and expand the campus to create a more vibrant college community. Take away their getaway cars and students might actually hang out on campus, get involved in after-class activities and make new friends.
Ultimately, colleges and universities should be building more halls of learning, living and recreation rather than working out how to squeeze in more parking. Campuses will never be car-free, but at least they can stop resembling shopping malls.
