Out-Of-Class #1: More Typical Issues

(author's name redacted)

 February 26^th, 2014

OOC #1

While standing outside in the blustering wind, snow, and frigid temperatures, the sight of a CATA bus approaching in the distance brings a sense of relief and joy.

For many individuals however, this sentiment is overshadowed by the uncertainty of whether they will be able to board the bus, or be forced to endure the unpleasant weather conditions for much longer than anticipated.

This issue of overcrowded CATA buses at Michigan State University that began at the start of second semester has become a main topic of discussion among frustrated students who are raising questions and concerns, while seeking change in the transportation system that they frequently utilize.

HOW FREQUENTLY DO THEY UTILIZE IT? DO YOU HAVE DATA FROM CATA ON HOW MANY MSU STUDENTS USE THE SERVICE? HOW CROWDED MSU ROUTES ARE COMPARED TO THE SYSTEMWIDE AVERAGES? LET’S USE DATA TO HELP ESTABLISH RELEVANCE HERE.

Neha Rao is among the many students that are unsatisfied with CATA’s timeliness and ability to provide enough space on their vehicles.

“The buses have to run on time because we depend on them,” Rao said.

Rao said she wishes CATA would fix the problem by putting more buses on the particular routes that are known to be most crowded, specifically Routes 31 and 26.

IS THAT STATISICALLY PROVEN? LET’S CHECK IT OUT VIA CATA DATA.

In response to a number of recent complaints that suggest this similar solution, CATA Director of Marketing Laurie Robison said that this is not an issue where buses can simply be added.

“Public transportation isn’t free,” Robison said.

Extra fees needed to accommodate such an increase in demand for buses would directly impact the taxpayers who ultimately fund public transportation, she said.

AGAIN, CAN WE OFFER DATA HERE TO SUPPORT THIS POINT? WHAT IS CATA’S BUDGET? HOW TIGHT IS IT? HAS IT BEEN GROWING OR SHRINKING IN RECENT YEARS? WHAT ARE THEIR REVENUE SOURCES? ARE THOSE SOURCES GROWING OR SHRINKING?

In addition, Robison said CATA only has so many vehicles that they can allocate to MSU, which further limits their ability to make any changes on campus routes.

AGAIN, SHOW ME THE NUMBERS OF WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT HERE

“Based on the dollars we have to work with, we try to provide affordability and convenience,” Robison said.

Freshman Whitney Tompkins, another MSU student who has experienced problems with CATA this semester, said she called and complained after missing a job interview due to the delayed and overcrowded buses.

HOW LATE WAS THE BUS? AND DID SHE GET THE JOB? LET’S BE SURE WE PREEMPTIVELY ANSWER OBVIOUS QUESTIONS CREATED BY OUR STORYTELLING.

Tompkins said she thinks it is unfair that in addition to tuition costs, students have to purchase a $50 bus pass for a service that is not always dependable.

Robison said students must take into account that public transportation is a very complex system simply because of the way it is funded.

HOW IS IT FUNDED? SHOW ME HOW IT IS; DON’T JUST TELL ME THAT IT IS

Kenneth Boyer, an MSU economics professor who is also an expert in public transportation funding, said that if transportation systems were “money-making enterprises,” students who are frustrated with having to pay for a bus pass would be making a valid point.

“Public transportation is funded by the community as a whole,” Boyer said. “They [the students] can’t really complain because they don’t pay the cost.”

He said both the property owners in East Lansing and the university pay for the majority of public transportation costs, and students only contribute a small part of this funding through bus passes.

AMONG CATA’S REVENUE SOURCES, HOW BIG OF A SOURCE IS FARES? AGAIN, LET’S USE DATA TO ILLUSTRATE IT

“It’s a wonder that students have any public transportation at all,” Boyer said.

After being a student on campus for three years, Rao said overcrowding is still as prominent as it was when she was a freshman, especially during the early morning and afternoon.

“You kind of have to reroute yourself,” Rao said. “You have to spend a whole hour getting to class when it’s only a few minutes away.”

Robison said although it is not always possible to provide students with quick service during certain “peak hours,” CATA utilizes all of their resources in an attempt to help with the increased demand.

“CATA has, at its own cost, put more buses on the roads at peak hours to accommodate the demand,” Robison said.

AGAIN, IS THERE DATA TO SUPPORT THIS? ASK CATA

Despite such efforts, she said more vehicles on the road have the potential to cause even more delays by creating additional traffic and back-ups.

The transportation system also allocates their longest vehicles to campus because of the volume of students who depend on their services, she said.

AGAIN, LET’S SEE THE STATS. WHAT ARE THE AMOUNT OF SEATS PER BUS ON MSU ROUTES? AND HOW DOES THAT COMPARE TO OTHER ROUTES OR SYSTEMWIDE AVERAGES?

In addition to her frustrations about paying for a bus pass, Tompkins said that CATA should not claim that the buses run every five to 10 minutes when they are not really arriving at those intervals.

AGAIN, DOES CATA HAVE STATS SHOWING THEIR ON-TIME RATE?

Robison said delays are inevitable because CATA has to deal with traffic and other accidents caused by bad weather throughout East Lansing.

“This trend of overcrowding is typical every year, specifically at the start of every new semester on campus,” Robison said.

Robison said she understands that people get frustrated, but it is ultimately up to the students to give themselves extra time to get from class to class.

“Public transportation is not designed to be perfect,” Robison said. “Students should try to accommodate their movements to the best of their abilities.”

Boyer said that although individuals assume buying a bus pass will give them access to the service whenever they need it, this is not always the case.

 He said all public transportation systems face difficulties because they have a fixed number of buses that vary in size, and these resources don’t always accommodate the fluctuations in demand that occur during the winter.

“I have sympathies on both sides,” Boyer said. “It’s not clear cut either way.”

Word count: 837

Sources:

Laurie Robison, Director of Marketing at CATA

lrobison@cata.org

517.204.2197

Kenneth Boyer, MSU Economics Professor

Expert in Public Transportation Funding and Transportation Economics

boyerkd@msu.edu

517.353.9088

Neha Rao, MSU Student

raoneha@msu.edu

517.755.7622

Whitney Tompkins, MSU Student

tompki66@msu.edu

517.745.5203

ASSIGNMENT GRADE: (grade redacted)

INSTRUCTOR COMMENTS: GOOD STRUCTURE AND GOOD INTERVIEWS AND A GOOD NEUTRAL SUORCE, BUT WE HAVE TO DO BETTER IN FOLLOW-UP QUESTIONS, ESPECIALLY THOSE THAT ASK FOR DATA TO HELP SUPPORT THE GENERAL CLAIMS BEING MADE BY BOTH SIDES. DON’T JUST TELL PEOPLE WHAT A TREND IS OR LET A SOURCE TELL READERS WHAT IS HAPPENING; SHOW PROOF FOR THOSE CLAIMS AND STATEMENTS BY OFFERING FOLLOW-UP DATA THAT PUTS THOSE CLAIMS TO THE TEST. A BIT MORE REPORTING HERE WILL GO A LONG WAY IN POTENTIALLY MAKING A SIGNIFICANT GRADE IMPROVEMENT.