The Ibis Ride provides a great service to students by driving them to and from the Grove so that they don’t have to. From a safety standpoint, it makes perfect sense: in offering the service, the university recognized that students go to the Grove to drink and party, so they might as well do it safely-by not driving. How ironic, then, that the university is considering scrapping the service on one of the days it is needed most.
This past Halloween, a crowd of more than a hundred students rushed the shuttles, eager to get to the annual festivities. The chaos that ensued, which came as the result of the apparent intoxication of those trying to board the buses, was primarily the fault of the students. However, the administration is not without fault because the were not adequately prepared for such a situation.
Luckily, no one was seriously hurt. As a result of that one incident, it makes no sense to try to dissolve the entire service which has done a great job in protecting students, especially on Halloween. That is the easy way out of a difficult situation, a route the university does not normally take.
As well, the administration is contradicting itself by contemplating cancelling the Halloween shuttle. When no ride is offered on the one night when it is probably needed the most, how could they claim to be doing everything to be protecting students’ well-being? Students will still go to the Grove without the shuttle. They will still drink and party hard, only many more of them will be driving there and back, endangering themselves and others.
Let’s not forget Spencer Kushner, who was arrested in October for hitting a cyclist in the Grove. If the Ibis Ride is scrapped, there could be many more such incidents in the future.
It is also noteworthy that the administration tried-and failed-to scrap the Ibis Ride behind Student Government’s back, especially considering the service began because of an SG initiative in the first place.
To the university’s credit, they did step back and allow a committee, which includes plans to review the Halloween shuttle. It is a step in the right direction and, if the panel has any sense, they will allow it to continue, albeit with better preparation. But it is a shame the university did not form such a body in the first place.