If we’ve noticed anything over the years, it’s that the county Transportation Commission is usually responsive to concerns about the local public transportation system. Transportation planners and county officials have often opened new lines and added buses in response to community concerns. From the looks of it, Calexico-based Imperial Valley College students are being listened to.
Calexico Mayor Pro Tem Bill Hodge and county District 1 Supervisor John Renison showed up to the bus stop at Third Street and Paulin Avenue bright and early Monday morning to witness firsthand what IVC students who catch the 6:43 a.m. bus have to say.
The students, who have collected signatures and some of whom went before the Transportation Commission at its Unmet Needs Public Hearing on Jan. 24., have told tales of doing everything but fighting for position to get on the bus to make it to IVC in the morning, with many students left stranded.
ICTC has promised to study the concerns and return with an evaluation and potential remediation, if that is needed, during a Feb. 28 meeting. Until then, there are some interim measures that will be started, including posting the bus schedules on IVC’s website.
Truth be told, we think there is some amount of the students using the bus not doing all they can do to avail themselves of the bus schedule. Granted, the ICTC website has been sketchy while it undergoes renovation, but there are other means to find out information.
That said, we’re happy to see some interim measures in place until something more permanent can be done. The Transportation Commission will do what is best for the riders it serves. We would ask that the commission does focus on IVC students, since IVC officials estimate one-third of its students use the bus system.
In fact, similar concerns led to the IVC Express line being adopted. Maybe, as the number of people using IVC grows, so should the bus lines to handle that influx of students. We’ll see what the commission’s findings say.
THE ISSUE:
Calexico students want bus line fixed.
WE SAY:
ICTC is usually quite responsive.
WHAT DO YOU SAY?
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