By Abram Farrington | Staff Writer
From blueprints to the rubber on the road, student government’s long-awaited promise has come to life — an airport shuttle that commutes to and from Dallas-Fort Worth Airport during the holiday seasons.
The bus will provide affordable transportation for the 35% out-of-state student population at Baylor. Pflugerville senior and Student Body President Landon Self has dedicated himself to serving the student body since his junior year campaign, with one of his goals being to reinstate the airport shuttle bus that was not offered last year.
Tickets for a one-way ride are $35 and are now available for reservation for Thanksgiving and Christmas breaks. Students can purchase tickets on the StuGov website.
“The shuttle bus will be open during Thanksgiving and Christmas break,” Self said. “There will be a trip up to Dallas at the beginning of Thanksgiving and then a trip back after. For Christmas break, there will be a trip to Dallas on the last day of finals.”
Student government members plan for the bus to become a permanent initiative. Self said he and student government will continue to push the mission of serving the student body.
“We want to emphasize that this service is back and ready to meet the needs of students who need an accessible and affordable ride to the airport,” Self said.
Self said he is honored and excited to launch the shuttle, not only because of the hard work, but also because it serves a tangible need for a vast majority of the student body. For many out-of-state students, the commute back home is challenging and expensive, whether it’s due to tedious transportation or long-term airport parking.
Boston sophomore Michael Thekaekara said he deals with these issues when he travels home for breaks.
“Traveling can be intense and expensive,” Thekaekara said. “The public transportation system itself is inefficient, especially in Dallas.”
The public transportation system is stressful for Thekaekara, and with only a few bus rides from Dallas to Waco, the options are limited.
“The shuttle bus would ease my mind,” Thekaekara said. “I wouldn’t have to worry about parking or expensive travel.”
Glen Ellyn, Ill., junior Micah Johnson also expressed having his fair share of difficulty traveling out of state.
“If you’re out of state and don’t have a car, it becomes a hassle because you have to ask your friends for a ride, and if they can’t, you have to rely on bus tickets and Ubering,” Johnson said.
Johnson said the public transportation system is unreliable and, at times, has few options.
“I missed my bus one time,” Johnson said. “And there are not a lot of buses that come to Waco, so I had to buy an Uber that costs almost $100.”
Las Vegas sophomore Josh Kim said traveling back home is also a hassle. Kim usually asks for rides to and from the airport during breaks, but he said it’s harder when he has to rely on others to take him.
“I usually try to give my friends a two to three week notice in advance, but even then, some will forget or change plans, which is hard to work around,” Kim said.
For many like Kim, driving is out of the equation and the commute to the airport takes a lot of planning with friends.
Johnson said the airport shuttle bus is a necessity and will be a good service to the student body.
“A shuttle bus from Baylor allows students to have a more lax and comfortable connection to DFW airport and home,” Johnson said.
