LAWRENCE, Kan. -- After a night at the bars last October, Kansas freshman Amy Duthler had a choice: an epic walk home to distant Oliver Hall, or rely on SafeRide. She ended up not having as many options as she thought.
"Bad idea relying on SafeRide, they never picked up," says Duthler, "I had to have called six, seven times. Not once did I even get the phone answered."
The K-U on Wheels website says that there are seven SafeRide vehicles out that give an average of 150-200 rides every Friday and Saturday night -- and with thousands of intoxicated K-U students out and about, there are many students left to their own devices in returning home. But this fall, the University of Kansas has implemented a new program to make up for these stranded students: SafeBus.
"SafeBus picks up students from Mass Street nine times after closing time, with six different buses running three routes," explains transportation director May Davis, "The buses are not too full, we want more people to take advantage of this program."
There are SafeBus routes that run through campus and two different residential areas that typically have high student populations. There are on board cameras to record any possible altercations that might arise, but May says that no fights or major problems have arisen on the buses.
"I would have definitely taken the SafeBus if it was available at the time," says Duthler, "it would have been better than that long walk home."