Security escort van service faces cutback
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Hopkins Security has announced plans to refocus security escort services to cater primarily to students traveling between campus and their residences, while leaving some uncertainty as to whether or not students traveling to and from parties will still be welcome on shuttles.
Though a bulletin will soon note the addition of a weekend shuttle that will service requests within Charles Village, Captain George Kibler of Hopkins Security indicated that shuttles will now focus more on school-related requests and less on personal transport. Many students fear such a significant change, effectively eliminating guaranteed no-questions-asked transport within a one-mile radius of campus, will leave them without options.
"We wanted to give students the ability to go wherever within a one-mile radius, and it blossomed into a full blown taxi service," Kibler said.
According to the Security Department, three major changes will take effect on Monday, Oct. 3.
The first change will increase fixed-route services to frequently visited shopping and dining locations within the one-mile range from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. While there are currently only two fixed-route vans making trips to the Rotunda, the Department of Campus Safety and Security will introduce two additional fixed-route vans. One van will run between Wolman Hall and the Waverly Shopping Center, and another will run from Wolman Hall to the corner of 22nd Street and Maryland Avenue. Both vans will run every half-hour.
Another change will eliminate the fixed-route escort van service after 10 p.m. on weekdays. This van formerly provided service between campus and nearby residential areas and shopping centers until 2:30 a.m.
The third major change will eliminate the ability of students needing a ride for non-school-related activities to request pick-ups from locations not on the normal route after 10 p.m. Trips to commercial locations, such as to a supermarket or to a friend's house, will no longer be provided.
Kibler said that this change is intended to concentrate exclusively on providing services to students traveling between campus and their residences. Previously, on-demand pickups were available on request for transport anywhere within a one-mile radius of campus daily from 5 p.m. to 3 a.m.
This change is not inconsistent with the University's stated policy regarding the shuttles, according to Kibler. "The purpose of the escort service as themed by the administration and security department is to provide a safe transportation service to students for school-related needs," he said.
"We cannot meet the goal of [having pick-ups every] 15 minutes for everyone on every case," Kibler added. "We've got people who are waiting 30 minutes, 45 minutes or an hour -- infrequently, but enough to cause concern. To fix that, we cut down services for those who want to go to non-school related functions," Kibler said.
Some students have expressed alarm at the changes, commenting that the shuttle service, in its previous form, was a vital service.
"When I applied to [Hopkins], the school booklet indicated that any pick-up and drop-off locations within a one-mile range of the Campus were allowed. That is what attracted me to come to this school," senior Yumi Miller said.
"The changes were thought to be minor inconveniences in the interest of providing better service overall," Dean of Undergraduate Education and Vice Provost Paula Burger said.
"Essentially, students are asked to do their shopping before 10 p.m. and to request escort service transport after 3 a.m. only for essential purposes. The goal is to provide van service which contributes to the safety of students," she added.
Some students, however, disagree with Burger's notion that errands can be taken care of during the evening.
"Most students are busy studying until library closes at 12 a.m. because they believe it is primary and shopping is secondary, so that is more likely to occur after 10 p.m. Super Fresh and other supermarket establishments are 24 hours for students like us because we need to buy things when we need them," Koo said.
"The review of the van service was prompted by student concerns voiced in town meetings and in e-mails to a number of administrators last year during the intense consideration of security issues," Burger said.
Burger reported that a working group, under direction of the Homewood Safety and Security Committee and chaired by engineering Professor James Fil, was established to discuss how to improve the shuttle service.
"The issue was addressed through the Homewood Safety and Security Committee, which consists of faculty, administrators, students and parents," Burger said.
"We have grown from a little four-van operation to putting out seven vans a night per shift, plus two yellow vans on weekends. That would probably be the upper limits of what we can put out there," Kibler said.
According to a document released by Kibler to the News-Letter titled "Escort Shuttle Route Service Listing," the Charles Village "weekender" Yellow van service will make designated stops "at requested locations within Charles Village including commercial establi-shments,"Wolman and McCoy Halls, and AMR residence halls to facilitate safe travel for students on Thursday through Saturday from 8 p.m. to 4 a.m.
It is unclear whether such "locations" include fraternities and off-campus residences at which parties may be occurring.
"During the late shift -- after 10 p.m. -- we usually get by with fewer drivers on weekdays. The route demands drop off pretty considerably after 10 p.m.," Kibler said.
"After 10 p.m., the focus shifts to students who need safe rides home from campus," Kibler said.
The termination of shuttle services until 3 a.m. was due to difficulties in finding drivers to work that late. Students who drive shuttles are typically unavailable at late hours, and for many of the shuttle drivers, driving is a second job, so they're unable to drive all night before waking up for their primary job.
In order to fully accommodate demand after 3 a.m., "[We would have to] pull our security officers away from their primary patrols that they've been assigned to," Kilber said.
The only other option, he added, would be to employ a contract service."That would be hundreds of thousands of dollars more," Kilber said.
The current cost of running the escort van services is approximately $400,000 per year, and estimates for the use of a contractor stand at an increase to $800,000 per year.
"You have to have a limit somewhere," Kilber said.
Some students found fault with this assessment.
"If we are trying to tighten up security around here then why would Campus Safety and Security cut down on measures?" asked Alex Prentiss, senior.
Kibler said, "After 10 p.m., if the ride is school-related, Campus Safety and Security will do whatever they have to do to help students. Even if a student gets stuck on campus after 3 a.m. and wants to go home, or a student is within the one-mile range and he or she has to get to campus, security will pick up and transport them after 3 a.m. But the regular security escort van service will stop providing service to students sharply at 3 a.m."
In an additional document released by Kibler to the News-Letter, it is stated, "[i]f a student is stranded a significant distance from campus and has no means to return to his/her residence, the student should call the security office."
"Instead of having on-demand escort vans drive around to pick up this person and that person, it would be better if Campus Safety and Security make designated stops and designated time schedules, more like a city bus," senior Caleb Henry said.
He added, "In that scenario, students' responsibilities are to walk to the stops and wait for the van. The operators would not be needed anymore. If Campus Safety and Security changes the escort van service policy, the big problem is that students are going to get smart about lying, saying, `I am going to the house right next to the party.'"
As the changes are implemented, Campus Safety and Security will continue to evaluate the program. The popularity of the stops will factor largely into the assessment; Campus Safety and Security said that it will work to increase frequency according to demand.
"This is basically a work in progress. We will be monitoring the results of these changes to make sure that they are effective. If there are problems, we are all committed to addressing them," Burger said.