Winter quarter brought sub-zero weather and sub-par CATS bus service to Ohio University. Here’s two students' accounts of the issues that occurred during the winter.
THE STORY OF THE MILL STREET RIDER
Mill Street is located a far distance from campus. It’s possible to walk, but the average resident probably wouldn’t want to. Myles Pettus lives in Mill Street village, and to avoid walking, especially on cold mornings, he rides the CATS bus.
One morning, Myles arrived at the Mill Street bus stop at about 8:57 a.m., and the bus was scheduled to arrive at 8:59. But on this particular morning, unbeknownst to Myles---he wouldn’t be riding it.
“There were a lot of people waiting at the Mill Street stop. Everybody was trying to catch a ride that day,” said Myles.
The bus arrived on schedule, and as the doors opened, Mill street residents began to pile on. Myles waited patiently as the Mill Street Villagers shuffled into a line and onto the bus. He politely allowed two women to get on the bus before him. But when Myles got on, it was like a re-run of Forest Gump’s first day of school, “seat’s taken.” There was no room for the senior pre-dentistry major in sight.
There was a reason for the overcrowding. The bus stops at Riverpark Apartments, before heading to Mill Street Village. It seemed that the cold weather brought out more Riverpark riders than usual, leaving little room for the residents at Mill Street. Myles prepared himself to ride the bus while holding on to one of the silver poles that was located in the rear. After all, it was 9 ‘o clock, and there seemed to be no other way he could make it to Bentley Hall in 10 minutes. The CATS bus driver wasn’t having it.
“She told me I couldn’t get on the bus because her supervisor informed her that students couldn’t ride if there were no seats. At first I laughed, I didn’t believe her. How the heck did she expect me to get to class? ,”said Myles.
Before winter quarter it was common for students to ride the bus standing up if there were no seats available. It came as a shock to the campus that suddenly standing up while riding wasn’t allowed, especially in cases like Myles’.
Myles refused to believe the bus driver. He began making his way toward pole, but he bus driver refused to drive with him standing. Myles had no choice but to get off, and find another way to class.
“I ended up not going to class that morning, it was just too cold to walk,” said Myles.
Shakespeare wrote, “One fire burns out another’s burning, one pain is lessened by another’s anguish.” The man wasn’t lying. Just a short period after Myles’ incident, Mill Street residents who had similar experiences began complaining to CATS about the overcrowding. The solution: No more Riverpark bus stop.
THE STORY OF THE RIVERPARK RIDER 
( Kenji Horton frowns as he catches the CATS bus at the Jefferson stop)
For Kenji Horton, a senior business major, it was just another day that he had to attend his 8 a.m. management class---so he thought.
“I rushed out of the house because I was sure that I was going to miss the bus. It was freezing outside, and I was the only person waiting, which I thought was a little odd, “said Kenji.
Kenji noticed that the Riverpark bus stop sign was missing, but he attributed it to vandalism. He continued to wait in the blistering cold, ignoring his gut feeling that told him the bus
wasn’t coming. Around 8:01 a.m. he noticed a CATS bus driving toward the Jefferson bus stop in the distance. Needless to say, the bus wasn’t coming.
Kenji had no choice but to run up Jeff hill (and we all know what a battle that it is) so he could make it to Copeland Hall in time for his class. Later on during the day, Kenji learned from friends that lived in Riverpark that the stop had been removed from the bus schedule.
“I would’ve really appreciated some kind of formal notice that the bus wasn’t stopping here anymore. It caused me a huge inconvenience that morning, " said Kenji.
