Dorms Face Weekday Bus Cancellation

BY NADINE AWADALLA
@nadinetweetstoo

The Office of Residential Life is cutting transportation services for dorm residents during weekdays due to low demand.

ResLife, as the office has come to be called, announced in an October 31 email that demand for the service comes from only 2 percent of the residents and “accounts for only 2.75 percent of the expenses incurred”, thus making it cost inefficient.

These results come from a demand analysis of the period following the Eid break, after the implementation of new monthly subscription and daily-use ticket systems as resolved during negotiations with dorm residents.

“What happened was that throughout this period, the demand was, on average, quite low,” said Yasser Allam, senior coordinator for campus living.

However, the email also outlined that should the demand remain low throughout November, “[the transportation] service will be suspended due to the lack of sufficient demand and income to cover the expenses.”

“We do not have the funds allocated for this service … [It] would account to almost 50 percent of our budget,” said Allam.

Negotiations with dorm residents earlier this semester lead to the reduction of bus service time slot availability – a measure reached to cover costs.

They also lead to an agreement on the monthly subscription fee and the ticket pricing, yet some students are unwilling to pay for the once-free service.

“Students were very reluctant to subscribe; only one student subscribed and we’ve sold three tickets,” Allam said.

Mina Magdy, the Associate Chair of the Representation Committee in the Student Union (SU) and himself a dorm resident, claims that at least five people he personally knows have subscribed to the service.

“There was mismanagement of the ticket system. Not everybody knew how to buy tickets and how to subscribe,” Magdy said.

“It’s not just about buses being canceled, it’s about the attitude,” Magdy added.

Meanwhile, students who depend on the bus service say they are firmly against any possible cancellation.

“The service should definitely not be cancelled especially since the students already pay a lot of money to stay in the dorms. Furthermore, we are so isolated from the rest of the city, so we really need the buses,” said Engy Abdelmoneim, Business Administration senior.

Allam, however, sees this matter differently.

“It was crucial in 2008-2009, when the campus here was literally in the dark. Right now, I think it’s a bit developed,” he said.

“I’m not denying that it’s a crucial service, but the need for it is being minimized.”

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