Students on both the Midtown and Wilf Campuses have responded to the recent changes in intercampus transportation with anger and confusion. Less frequent, slower and bumpier rides have been at the center of student complaints.

Last semester as in previous years, 15-passenger vans shuttled on the half hour between the then Main and Midtown Campuses. However, as per new arrangements borne out of University discussions with a Student Life subcommittee, 25-passenger mini-buses, dubbed "monsters" for their size and slow speed by many students, now shuttle between the campuses only once on the hour. A key student complaint has also been that the new mini-buses are not permitted to travel on the FDR below 96th street, increasing travel time, and making the ride more uncomfortable.

The concept for transportation changes was initiated by Yeshiva administration at a Student Life meeting in December, and a transportation subcommittee was subsequently formed to discuss the pertinent issues. According to University Dean of Students David Himber, the changes were initiated in response to the increasingly unsafe nature of the 15-passenger vehicles, and the reciprocally elevated insurance costs. "Insurance had gone up, meaning safety had gone down... the 15-passenger vans are known to roll over at times."

In fact, Don Summers, chief of Yeshiva Security, pointed to a report issued by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in April 2001 on the rollover propensity of 15-passenger vans. The report explains that loading the 15-passenger van causes the center of gravity to shift rearward and upward, increasing the likelihood of rollover. It also found that the shift in the van's center of gravity increases the potential for loss of control in panic maneuvers. Finally, the NHTSA study noted that even when carrying between one and four passengers, the 15-passenger vans were 17 percent more likely to be involved in a rollover accident than smaller such vehicles.

"Once they put an advisory out like that, you'd have to be foolish not to follow it," remarked Summers. He also mentioned that the document states: "Colleges and universities across the country are reassessing their reliance on 15-passenger vans."

Some students fail to see eye to eye with this reasoning, though. Yehuda Shmidman, Yeshiva College Junior, argued, "It's all a big farce, and the fact that the University is pretending to do it in the name of security, makes it even worse. We look around and we see other colleges and institutions, such as Hunter College, using these particular vans: how unsafe could they really be? How often do vans really turn over?"

Students on the transportation subcommittee were "initially ecstatic about the new plan," explained subcommittee chair Ilan Rosenrauch. "We were expecting 28-passenger vehicles running on the half hour... and we were also led to believe that acquiring a highway permit for the vehicles [enabling them to travel on the FDR] would be a sure thing." Yeshiva failed to acquire the necessary permits, and the vans must now travel on local streets below 96th Street, a traffic nightmare during rush hour and slower than the highway in general.

"This new van setup is very problematic for me," commented Mikael Kavian, Sy Syms School of Business sophomore and a frequent user of the intercampus shuttle. "It comes less often and it takes ages - at least 45 minutes," he said. A group of women from Stern College simultaneously declared that the new service "stinks and is completely unpractical; we hate the monsters!" Other complaints also relating to the minibuses, which are now operated by Yole Ambulette Services were launched by students and their representative leaders.

Rosenrauch pointed to specific cases where the negative effects of the new transportation schedule were evident. "Kollel wives [living on the uptown Wilf Campus] who get out of class a bit after six and miss the six o'clock shuttle, must now wait for the seven o'clock shuttle. Due to the rush hour traffic and the new bus' inability to take the highway they only arrive back at the Wilf Campus at 8. Instead of the two hour wait, many women are opting to take the inconvenient and less safe A-Train."

Presently, changes in local van service are also being considered for the near future, but the University is not releasing any details at this time.

Recognizing that the new van service is less time efficient for most students, Himber wanted to assure students that the new policy is not set in stone, but rather has been operating on a trial basis for the first three weeks of the semester. "The University wants three weeks to review the system and find the kinks, to see who uses it and how long it takes. Then, meetings will be held to see if it is physically possible to increase the number of runs to possibly every forty-five minutes, even if it costs more..."

Upon analysis of the travel logs for the past two and a half weeks, Summers is confident that the change to every forty-five minutes, beginning with 6pm, is plausible and workable. "We hope to put this plan into effect starting next week, pending approval."

In terms of using the highway, Himber and Summers believe the option is a dead-end: "We originally felt a permit could be secured, but it in the end it could not be," noted Himber.

Despite the generally upbeat predictions by Himber and Summers, a boisterous meeting of the transportation subcommittee with Yeshiva administrators last week produced no defined plan for improving service. While further discussion of a 45 minute shuttle cycle ensued, no hard recommendations were adopted, leaving students with continued waits at the van stops.

Nevertheless, Himber optimistically concluded, "This is a jigsaw puzzle which is being pieced together and hopefully a solution will be found that ultimately benefits the students."