When Are The Shuttles Running?

As Camp Harvard unfolds, the shuttle has been noticeably absent.

Despite the intensity of moving-in week, the shuttle is still on its lazy summer schedule. There is only one scheduled shuttle, the Soldier’s Field loop, which runs during the morning and evening rush hours and even then, only every 30-40 minutes. There is also a daytime van service for mobility-impaired students, but it requires a doctor’s note. There is an evening van service, but it is by appointment only, and can take over a half-hour to show up. For all practical purposes, the summer schedule yields no regular service to Mather or the Quad.

Yet there is one time when the shuttle is needed most: Moving-in Period. The loads from CVS and Staples are the heaviest, the buys from the Habitat for Humanity “Stuff” sale are bulky. It is a time when the demands of several organizations—such as Crimson Key or the Peer Advising Program—are at their highest. Furthermore, students and their parents may need to run errands in the Square. Camp Harvard is a time when we arguably most need the shuttle.

To be fair, Harvard University Operation Services, which runs the shuttle, has been trying to meet student demand. I spoke to Carl Tempesta, Operations Manager of Passenger Transport and Fleet Management Services, who informed me of his attempts to try to phase in some shuttles on the regular-year weekend schedule, as driver availability allowed. Tempesta was very friendly and conveyed his sincere desire to accommodate student demand. The weekend shuttle would run every 20 minutes to the three major undergraduate destinations: Currier House, Mather House, and Boylston Gate. This is an excellent policy, except for the fact that the shuttle isn’t yet fully operational. As a result, it isn’t consistent and so most people are unsure about the schedule.

To find the schedule, Tempesta suggested that I check the website. However, upon visiting the website, the only information present was the schedule of the Soldier’s Field loop shuttle.

I then took Tempesta’s second piece of advice: calling 617-495-0400 to find out what time the shuttles were actually running. The number had not been advertised yet this year.

Upon calling to re-confirm the schedule, however, I was told by the dispatcher that there was no shuttle running on the weekend schedule, as Tempesta had said.

As I write this article, I still have no idea whether there will be a shuttle tonight to bring me back to the Yard—or over to a party. Even those in charge appear to be confused—leaving us students no choice but to feel the same.

If the Shuttle is to be effective, it must run on a regular, well-publicized schedule during move-in. The obvious solution is to end the summer schedule at the end of the summer.



Reva P. Minkoff ’08 is a Crimson editorial editor and a government concentrator in Pforzheimer House.