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Faced with construction begin-
ingon Wellborn Road, Bus
Iperations had three months during
lesummer to plan new bus routes
get around the construction, but
iree months must not have been
long enough. The
decisions made by
Bus Operations to
change bus routes
have turned the bus
system into a night
mare for some of its
^ passengers. The
ZIMMER ExCEL bus, for
example, experi-
ncedamove that gives the tradi-
Reao/ Jonally Southside route a 20-minute
ttourto the other side of campus.
The new routes for some of the
uses are necessary because of the
pies, veterinarian us (instruction on Wellborn and the fact
tat they cannot go down Joe Routt or
cross Wellborn. Numerous routes
has a great sal® ro P off at the Memorial Student
adoption! Feeincu enter, which would have caused bot-
:are. Student ur,
-6295
ns, $50. Call Gut
MMATES
unecking at the Albritton Tower as
tebusesexited main campus. Two
iff-campus routes. Elephant Walk and
Hullabaloo, were moved to the Trigon
area near the Psychology building and
Heldenfels in an effort to ease the traf
fic. Bus Operations then sent Trigon
routes, including ExCEL and Aggie
Band, to the opposite side of campus
near Blocker.
Where is the rationale behind
changing bus routes that would have
continued to run smoothly despite the
construction? Rather than devising a
plan to correct the MSC and other
West campus routes that truly needed
to be changed, the system has been
turned completely upside down. The
first two weeks of school, it became
almost routine for ExCEL passengers
to wait up to 25 minutes for a bus to
arrive at the main campus stop. This
was understandable at the time, con
sidering the route change, but still a
long time to wait for a bus.
Undoubtedly, conditions have
improved and there is more regularity
on the route now, but the fact remains
that Bus Operations moved a smooth
running route to a completely different
stop. What was once a short eight-
minute ride to campus has turned into
a marathon tour through College
Station. The ExCEL route travels all
the way down Texas Avenue and then
down University straight into arguably
the most congested area of campus,
where it once drove straight down
George Bush Drive.
In the spirit of democracy and sens
ing some dissent among its passengers,
ExCEL riders were given an opportuni
ty by Bus Operations to vote on the
route and where its main campus stop
should be. The ballot given to ExCEL
passengers was seemingly carefully
crafted to achieve an outcome conven
ient for Bus Operations. There were
positives and negatives listed for three
possible bus stops and then a space to
vote at the bottom. Positives listed for
the current route and stop on Ireland
Street included “easier to remember”
and “close to main campus classes.”
These are hardly positive aspects of the
current route, it is not difficult to get
on a bus and remember where it stops,
and Blocker may not be close to some
one’s classes. No negative aspects con
cerning the 20-minute ride to campus
were listed, rather, the obvious “Ross
Street causes big delays” was the only
negative to be considered by voters.
For the proposed G. Rollie White
Coliseum stop, a positive was “near
MSC,” which is a fact not a positive,
and the negative was that it was “not as
close to classes.”
Gary Jackson, Bus Operations man
ager, released a memo to ExCEL pas
sengers on September 24 stating that
45percent of passengers voted to keep
the route the same. He cited the demo
cratic process in keeping the route on
Ireland Street and vowed to continue
monitoring the situation in hopes that
the route would continue to improve.
The fact that the majority of its pas
sengers did not ride ExCEL last year
when it dropped off at the Trigon cou
pled with the poorly planned ballot
allowed for the landslide victory for
the Ireland Street stop.
We cannot allow passengers to vote
on bus routes, as their minds would
change every semester with the loca
tion of their classes. Bus Operations
has a duty to serve students in the best
manner possible, and this includes
planning well-thought-out bus routes
that get students where they need to be
in an efficient way.
Ballot, voting and democracy aside
when paying for a service, there is a
standard that must be demanded by
patrons. A&M students all incur a bus
fee, and the system should reflect the
best possible product for their money.
Waiting over 25 minutes to get to cam
pus and accepting a standard much
less than one previously in place are
not things that ExCEL passengers
should settle for.
Luckily for Bus Operation, the traffic
conditions on Ross Street have eased,
taking some of the pressure off of
them and the routes that they send into
this congested area. The decrease in
traffic conceals the fact that Bus
Operations ignored previously existing
traffic conditions and made thought
less, illogical changes in bus routes
that passengers counted on.
Kelln Zimmer is a junior
English major.
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B' uresponse to Jessica Crutcher's
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114.
MAIL CALL
talk about
olerance is needed
was very pleased to read Ms.
hitcher's column in The
kttalion. 1 would like to see
we talk of tolerance here at
exas A&M, though sadly, I do
ot. I realize that A&M is a gen
tly conservative campus, but l
not think that means that we
ave to be intolerant to other
leas as well.
realize that Ms. Crutcher’s
lain idea is tolerance towards
omosexuals, but I believe that
lis doctrine can be expanded to
over many other aspects of our
ves, including sex, religion,
ace, and so on. I know it is hard
listen to someone who has an
opinion that is directly opposite
of yours, but we must be adults
about these matters and realize
that there is room for all manner
of perspectives here in our great
university.
Mack Nolen
Class of 2004
Conservatives are
only fighting back
In response to Jessica Crutcher’s
Oct 11th column:
I find it appalling the claims
that were made in the article by
Ms. Crutcher. The Young
Conservatives started Traditional
Family Values Week in response
to Coming Out Week. The pur
pose of Coming Out Week is to
educate and show support for
Gays, Lesbians, etc. The pur
pose of Family Values Week is to
educate and show support for
family values. One statement
that was made in the article was
concerning the fact that YCTAM
is in the wrong for actively
approaching people in order to
get their message across.
However, I seem to recall that
on Monday there were gay advo
cates standing right in the middle
of the Rudder Fountain area
passing out fliers to hapless
passers by, many of whom were
offended at what the fliers said.
For years, we have sat on the
sidelines watching the GLBTA
have their events, all the while,
making Texas A&M into a more
pro-homosexual campus.
Adding to this, the Texas A&M
administration has accommodat
ed the GLBTA by providing
resources and funds to promote
their cause. If a student decides
not to accept the homosexual
value system as equal to their
own, they certainly have the right
to do that.
The bottom line is that there
are two sides to every issue and
this case, their values are in
direct conflict with ours. GLBTA
promotes the pro-homosexual
side, and YCTAM promotes the
side of pro-family values that this
nation was founded on.
If the GLBTA continues to pro
mote their ideas, then it is the
right of YCTAM to promote theirs
and for anyone to fault us for this
is both self-righteous and hypo
critical.
David Rushing
Class of 2002
ResLife: Too much control
THOMAS
CAMPBELL
S ince the Aggie Bonfire collapse, Texas
A&M has placed a huge
emphasis on risk man
agement to divert future acci
dents. All of these efforts are
well-intentioned and most are
very effective. However, some
fall short of their intended goal
of keeping students safe and
actually prevent some students
from helping other students,
and change is needed.
Risk management is a process of identifying,
reducing and eliminating risk involved with a
particular activity. The purpose of risk manage
ment should be to protect the safety and health
of students, first and foremost. The minor role
in risk management should be eliminating
University liability — only after the student’s
safety is ensured. A&M is one of the top univer
sities in the nation and is striving to become bet
ter. To achieve the goals of Vision 2020, student
safety and welfare should be placed above
everything else.
Unfortunately, at times limiting liability can
take away from ensuring student’s safety. The
University exists for the students, students do
not exist for the University. That is why stu
dent’s welfare should be the first priority in all
situations.
If a student is injured or sick and needs
immediate medical attention, the Department
of Residence Life instructs all resident advisors
not to drive that student to the hospital, but
rather call someone else. Under no circum
stances can an RA drive a student to the hospi
tal. Because the RA is an employee of the
University, the University is afraid of lawsuits
that may come in any situation. In the past
RAs had been told to drive sick or injured stu
dents to the hospital, but now the importance
has been placed on the welfare of the
University and not that of a student. This is not
keeping the student’s best interest in mind, but
rather the financial interest of the University as
the top priority. If someone needs medical
attention, the RA should be allowed to bring
them to the best possible medical care. That
would be putting the student’s interests first.
RAs must now turn in event planners that
outline their proposed event and all possible
risks involved. This is a great idea in theory,
but not when it goes too far.
RAs must even document that a paper cut is
a possibility in a dorm hall card tournament.
This shows how something good for Aggies
has been taken too far.
Will Frederick, a junior psychology major,
believes that spontaneity is one of the best
parts of college life.
“Part of the college experience is just doing
things on the spur of the moment,” Frederick
said. “I love just going out with my friends
with no prior plans and having a great time.”
The new RA rules about prior planning of
events prohibits this. An event plan has to be
filled out in advance, negating the possibility of
a spontaneous activities coordinated by the R.A.
A&M offers a fine education, and prides
itself on the “other education” offered here.
Students are able to get hands-on training and
new experiences through a wide range of clubs
and organizations. If A&M required a one-hour
course in risk management for incoming fresh
men, new students would learn essential life
skills to benefit them both during their stay at
A&M and throughout their life. Risk manage
ment skills are very important, and an available
course would benefit A&M as a whole.
Having risk management skills taught to
students on campus instead of only the student
leaders would make A&M an inherently safer
campus.
ResLife has great intentions in keeping the
students and the University safe. With the new
risk management implementations there will be
obvious kinks in the system. It is a work in
progress, and as such, should be reevaluated.
There may be growing pains with a new pro
gram, but they should be corrected for the full
benefit of students.
Thomas Campbell is a senior
agricultural journalism major.