TRANSIT TRANSITION

Southeast Missouri State University shuttle bus driver Nathan Tuschhoff says he would prefer to stay off city streets. Traffic congestion only makes it harder for him to run on time.

His bosses understand that, too. The university is building a transit way, an internal campus road designed to get its shuttle buses around campus without having to travel on traffic-clogged Henderson Avenue and Sprigg Street.

The ultimate goal: Provide students with a reliable shuttle system so they don't have to wait more than seven or eight minutes for a bus.

Students complain about waiting as long as half an hour, particularly late at night when fewer buses run. Even during the day when there are four buses in service, students find themselves waiting as long as 20 minutes for a ride.

Most students would rather walk than wait for a bus, said sophomore Julia Metelski. "They don't ride it unless they have to," she said.

Even when the bus is on time, the routes often are too meandering for students hurrying to classes. Students don't care about the transit way unless it improves shuttle service, Metelski said.

Al Stoverink, Southeast's facilities management director, says that's exactly what the transit way is designed to do. Southeast is spending $750,000 on the first two phases of the transit project, which will provide a bus route from Dempster Hall to the Art Building/Academic Hall parking lot.

Project details

Work began last year with construction of a portion of the transit way as well as an adjoining brick sidewalk, decorative street lamps and a parking lot along Henderson where the school's tennis courts once stood. Construction of the transit way from Cheney Hall to the parking lot behind Academic Hall began in May and should be completed by late September, school officials said. The work includes construction of a small section of roadway linking Greek Drive to the Dempster Hall parking lot on the north side of campus.

Electronic gates will be installed to close off Cheney Drive and other internal roads from public access, a key move in the university's efforts to move parking to the perimeter of the campus.

The project includes a turn-around area at Cheney Drive and Henderson.

Ultimately, the university wants to extend the transit way to the northern and southern edges of the campus, from the new tennis courts and the recreation fields on Bertling Street to Houck Stadium on Broadway.

Stoverink said it will take several more phases to complete the transit way. He's not sure how long it might take. Each phase of the project hinges on securing federal dollars.

The current construction work is funded 80 percent with federal money. The university is paying the other 20 percent.

Moving ahead

The next phase will center on extending the transit way to connect with Circle Drive behind Academic Hall and improving parking. Stoverink said the university hasn't finalized plans for that work, which is expected to make major changes in the car-clogged parking lot and roadway behind Academic Hall.

Other future improvements may include a traffic light at the intersection of New Madrid and Greek Drive Extension near the Student Recreation Center. The university wants to install a light that would be activated by the bus drivers to stop traffic on New Madrid. City approval would be needed since New Madrid is a city street.

Stoverink said the transit way will connect to a $12 million parking garage the university plans to build on New Madrid Street west of the Student Recreation Center. That project also depends on securing federal funds.

Construction of the parking garage could begin next summer and it could be in operation by 2003.

But Stoverink said few people will want to park in the garage, with its 1,800 spaces or more, unless the shuttle buses run on time. "We have to get that system as efficient as we can make it," he said. "The parking garage may be a failure without a good transit way."

Likewise, the transit way means little if there's insufficient parking for students wanting to catch the shuttles. "The two have to go hand in hand," he said.

Shuttles being used

Even with its faults, the current shuttle system hauled 149,262 students and university employees around campus last year, said Doug Richards, director of Southeast's Public Safety and Transportation Department. That was up from 131,357 in 1999.

Richards said usage should climb once the transit way is finished.

Tuschhoff, the bus driver, said the transit way should speed up shuttle service and improve safety. It's dangerous for the slow-moving buses to pull out in front of the fast-moving traffic on city streets, he said.

But he wishes the entire transit way were two lanes wide. Much of the transit way will be only 14 feet wide, large enough for a single shuttle bus.

"It might create a little bit of a problem, meeting in the middle of that," said Tuschhoff.

School officials say radio communication between the buses should prevent any mishaps.

Stoverink said the transit way was built to a single-lane width in the area bordering the Henderson parking lot to provide as much parking as possible should the university renovate Parker Hall for use as a student union.