For many Western students like Erik Lowe, riding the bus is a matter of convenience.

“It’s just so much easier than driving,” said Lowe, Associated Students (AS) vice president of legislative and governmental affairs. “You just sit back, relax, and get to campus.  My [future] apartment will be behind the park and ride for a reason.”

Western senior Eugenio Bafaro said that driving is not always practical and public transportation provides a reliable way to get to campus.

“The bus saved me when my car needed to be fixed, and I couldn’t drive for four months,” Bafaro said. “Then I realized how much easier it is to get everywhere. Now I ride the bus every day.”

Western students have  given up enough trips by car since June 2006 to prevent the release of 3,650 tons of carbon dioxide, 128 tons of carbon monoxide and 13.46 tons of hydrocarbons into the atmosphere, according to the Whatcom Council of Governments.

The Whatcom Transportation Authority (WTA) has seen the evidence of this sacrifice.

In the past year, fixed route ridership increased by 46 percent, of which Western students account for 73 percent, said Rick Nicholson, director of Service Development. 

Students are choosing public transportation more frequently  because it’s cheaper than driving, said Susan Horst, Whatcom Council of Governments community transportation program manager.

“Its more convenient than finding a parking spot," Horst said. "There’s growing awareness that we need to do something about climate change, and now there is a compulsory bus pass.”

Horst said the Viking Express Pass encourages Western students to ride the bus and help the environment because the students voted to include its $25 fee in their tuition. 

“The increase in students taking the bus is a testament to the success of the transportation fee,” Lowe said. “As soon as they got the passes in their hands, ridership increased.”

Bafaro said riding the bus also has academic benefits.

“Waiting for the bus helped me finally get my reading done,” Bafaro said. “I read every day at the bus stop and then on the ride to school. You have to readjust your schedule a bit, but it’s definitely worth it.”

Nicholson said the WTA focuses on increasing ridership in two main areas: residential corridors along which the bus stops every 15 minutes called “Go Lines,” and Western’s campus. 

“Students are the most price-sensitive creatures out there,” Nicholson said. “If they can save 20 - 40 bucks filling up their gas tank by taking the bus instead, they will.  The bus pass makes that easy.”

Western students are also taking advantage of their bus passes by utilizing the late-night shuttle.

More than 14,000 people rode the shuttle in its first two quarters of running, said Western AS Alternative Transportation Coordinator Devin Branson.

“It’s a way to get home safely late at night whether it’s from the bars or even work,” Branson said.  “It’s one more option if you need a way to get home at 3 a.m. instead of walking alone.”

The WTA will continue to promote ridership by working with the university and collaborating on community programs that advocate public transportation, Nicholson said. 

SmartTrips is designed to  be educate people about the efficiency and environmental benefits of public transportation.

It's sponsored by the WTA, Whatcom Council of Governments, Whatcom County and the City of Bellingham and it allows county members to create an online diary of their “smart trips,” which are one-way journeys made by walking, bicycling or riding the bus.

Since it began in July 2006, the program has had approximately 6,600 participants, and the distance they choose not to drive exceeds 8 million miles, Horst said.

That is equivalent to driving 360,776 times around the Earth’s equator.

The idea is that when you write down everything you do, you become more aware of your actions, Horst said.

“If you want to quit smoking, then you write down the number of times you pick up a cigarette and you wind up doing it less," Horst said. "If you write it down when you make a smart trip, then you learn how easy they are to make and it gives you insight into other times you can make them. Then we tell you how those trips are adding up.”

Carol Berry, Western’s sustainable transportation program manager, said the university will continue to strive for environmentally friendly transportation by evaluating how students are getting to and from campus.

Western's high number of student bus riders is quite an accomplishment, Lowe said.

“This sort of ridership achievement really puts Western at the forefront of environmental consciousness by having students that are aware of their impact on the environment,” Lowe said.

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