The Tiger

Issue date: 8/29/08 Section: News

Both commuters and those who cannot muster the energy to cross the Lightsey Bridge on foot have no doubt noticed a change in the Clemson Area Transit (CAT) system serving Clemson's campus.
Less than a month before classes began on Aug. 20, University and CAT officials collectively approved and implemented the new Tiger Route.
After looking at the ridership numbers compiled from the Transit Master Plan, CAT along with Parking Services and the University's Office for Student Affairs approved and agreed to do away with the Bridge, Maverick and Lightsey routes.
To make up for services eliminated with the Maverick route, the Red route has been extended to provide service to downtown Central.
Specifically, the new Tiger Route was developed by CAT in response to the University's budget cuts. CAT's proposal was approved after being reviewed by numerous officials including Clemson student government representatives.
CAT had two weeks to train more than 70 drivers on the new route, develop marketing material and reassign buses to cover the new routes.
In an attempt to meet their goal of "service and awareness" CAT and the University stationed "hosts" on each bus on the Tiger Route to field riders' questions and had parking officials staged in parking areas to direct drivers to open lots.
Full buses, excessive wait times and lack of parking spaces are just some of the complaints that Geary Robinson, Director of University Parking Services, and George Smith, Associate Vice President for Student Affairs, have received as they ride the buses to assess the effectiveness of the changes and listen to students' feedback.
Smith and Robinson agreed that the decision for change was made quickly; however, they urged students to reevaluate their perceptions of how CAT should operate.
Robinson suggested that students use both the east and west routes when attempting to get to the "academic core" of campus.
Buses from the breezeway area going eastbound toward the library circle tend to be less full and the total trip time (riding and walking time) is comparable to that of the westbound.
The new route exists to serve and connect both sides of campus more effectively as buses now go to five additional commuter lots that were not part of the former CAT route.
According to Smith, "tweaking" the new route is necessary and will begin as early as next week.
Discussions with CAT officials are underway to expand the eight-minute service to fit within the 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. timeframe.

Continued...

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