A new shuttle system that would bring students between the Ithaca College campus and the Circle Apartments has been proposed by the Student Government Association. SGA president and senior Aaron Bloom said the shuttle would be a big improvement from other shuttle attempts.

“The largest problem we have been faced with is the administrators can remember when there have been other shuttles in the past [that weren’t] very reliable,” Bloom said.

Bloom said he first had the idea for the shuttle last year while living in the Circle Apartments. He thought something needed to be done about the amount of students driving from the Circles to campus for classes.

“I thought it was ridiculous how often my friends and people in general were driving down to campus,” Bloom said.

SGA is conducting a student survey to collect public opinion on the potential shuttle system.  He said SGA submitted plans and research for the project to President Peggy R. Williams and Brian McAree, vice president of student affairs and campus life, earlier this year. Bloom said Williams and McAree suggested the survey to get student feedback about the project.

Bloom said SGA hopes the project will offer students a transportation option and, more importantly, reduce carbon dioxide emissions.

The Presidents Climate Commitment Committee, part of the American College and University Presidents’ Climate Commitment, has developed a plan to reduce carbon dioxide emissions and become more carbon-neutral.  

Bloom said transportation takes up 25 percent of those emissions, and the project is a clear way to help fix the problem. When the amount of carbon dioxide emitted from personal transport was compared to that of the hypothetical shuttle system with a 100 percent ridership from Circles residents, Bloom said he found that carbon dioxide emissions would decrease nearly 50 percent.

“If the college invests more initially on something [like this project] so that it’s more ‘green’ or more efficient, … ultimately it will pay for itself,” Bloom said.

He said he is confident students will support the initiative.

“Students are very conscious of sustainability as an issue right now and that commitment to sustainability will be told through their responses in the survey,” he said.

McAree said in addition to students’ interest in the shuttle system, the survey asks how students would ideally prefer to pay for the service.

“I’m very curious to see whether [students] would be interested in paying additional amounts of money,” McAree said.

McAree said if enough students are willing to pay a fee, the Ithaca College Board of Trustees and the Budget Committee will discuss how the shuttle would fit into the annual college budget.

Since next year’s budget has already been passed, McAree said it would be difficult to implement the service next year.  Bloom’s hope is that, if passed, the shuttle would become a reality during the 2009-10 academic year.

Bloom said he doesn’t think financial issues should stop the initiative.

“I know the college can make it happen,” he said. “Just coming off of a very successful capital campaign, our endowment has grown, and it’s not like it’s out of the question.”

He said prices could be kept low by adding a new parking pass which would allow residents to park only in the Circle lots until 5 p.m. if they also purchase a shuttle pass. The price for the package would hopefully be comparable to a red-lot parking pass, Bloom said.

“I don’t think it’s necessarily that we need to charge more on tuition,” Bloom said. “... I’d like to make it so that ... it makes it much more enticing to buy the shuttle pass than the red parking pass.”

Bloom said that because the shuttle system is in its preliminary research phase, no costs can be estimated.

Freshmen Brittany Patane, who plans to live in the Circle Apartments next year, said she would be more than willing to pay more for such a service and not use her car during the day.

“[Students] would be saving money and gas and [they] wouldn’t have to keep driving around looking for a parking spot or drive up and down to class everyday,” Patane said. “I think it’s the perfect solution.”

Senior Meredith Titterington said the shuttle would be a good use of the college’s funds.

“Everybody complains about tuition going up, but it goes up every year anyway,” she said. “... [With a shuttle bus], the money [would be]] put to good use.”

SGA will review the survey when enough students have completed it and will then present the information back to Williams, McAree and Carl Sgrecci, vice president of finance and administration. They have 559 responses so far and would like responses from half the student body.

“It’s my hope that [the faculty and committees involved] really do take this as a very serious issue,” Bloom said. “I’m convinced the President’s committee and climate plan will take this information on as a viable option for reducing our transportation carbon emissions.”

McAree said both the positive and negative aspects of the project need to be examined.

“It’s a very worthwhile idea, but in implementing any idea we have to take a look at what the cost implications are and what the consequences are for students — good and bad,” he said.