Letters to the Editor | Shuttle service effective, but in need of expansion

I am writing to express a gratitude that I and many other students feel for the campus shuttle. Whether students are uncomfortable walking alone at night, cold, tired or too drunk to walk, the shuttle provides a valuable and convenient service. Similarly, the new community shuttle also provides a great service for those who work in the community or who simply want to get off campus.

Many students I’ve talked to appreciate both of these, so hats off to Security and the administration for providing these services. I would, however, like to suggest an addition. I think it would be a great idea to offer an additional shuttle to off-campus housing at night. This would provide safety and convenience to students who live off campus. I know many students are uncomfortable walking the Poughkeepsie streets at night, especially with the reports of burglaries and muggings along College Avenue and beyond.

Even though many off-campus students have cars, they often don’t drive to campus. If they do, they might sometimes be too intoxicated to drive back, forcing them to walk, which is even less pleasant during the Poughkeepsie winters. Although I’ve been told Security escorts are available, I feel that a regular running shuttle at night would be more convenient, even if it only ran within a mile of campus.

I recognize that this would require a considerable investment of time and money, but the campus and community shuttles already in place require a similar investment. Why not take this extra step to provide a safe and convenient form of transportation to off-campus students? Considering the small percentage of students who do not reside on campus, this could probably be a low-scale operation.

If other students feel this way, I would encourage them to let the administration know. Thanks again to the Security department, and I hope that they will consider the possibility of an off-campus housing shuttle.

—Andrew Dueñas ’08