On August 29th, 2016, Dickinson College's Department of Public Safety (DPS) launched its new student shuttle service (formerly known as Safety Shuttle). The service is know known as Campus Shuttle and, like Safety Shuttle, it is free for students to use. However, in speaking with friends, class members, and housemates, I've come to the conclusion that almost no one likes this new shuttle system. Safety Shuttle was beneficial to our campus because it provided just what its name indicates. Safety. In years past, students knew that if they were far from where they needed to go at night (and wanted to avoid the poorly-lit areas of campus and Carlisle) that they could count on Safety Shuttle getting them there. We understand that the Safety Shuttle drivers and dispatchers were often overwhelmed with the influx of calls from students. We also realize that it was frustrating to have students sometimes not show up when the shuttle arrived. So Campus Shuttle attempts to avoid these issues by having a schedule of pick up and drop off locations. Nevertheless, we believe that Dickinson should continue to prioritize the safety of its students over the efficiency of the Campus Shuttle service. In changing the name and the system, this service forces students, who don't feel like waiting 40 minutes for the shuttle's arrival, to walk by themselves. Although DPS also offers Safe Walk, several students have reported that they were told to wait for the Campus Shuttle or had to hassle the dispatch officer to actually provide this service. I've spoken to a number of Campus Shuttle drivers and they have reported that the service is not nearly used as much as it used to be. As a campus that is concerned about Sustainability, should we not be bothered that this service involves large vans that drive around for 7 hours with little to no passengers? There are several flaws with this service and I think that DPS should revisit how it works. The goal of this petition is to have Campus Shuttle reinstated or to have the Campus Shuttle program revised in order to address these stated issues and others mentioned in the comments. We would like for DPS to have a forum where students can ask questions and make suggestions. If you believe that the Safety Shuttle service should be reinstated, or that the Campus Shuttle program needs to be improved, please sign this petition and feel free to leave any comments that you think are necessary to strengthen this argument. Thank you!
