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When a new fleet of Marguerite shuttle buses rolls out during the first week of September, riders can expect to be a lot more comfortable, said Kevin Mathy, transportation programs manager in Parking and Transportation Services (P&TS). The seats on the 20 new buses are better cushioned than those on the buses currently in use, and the new vehicles are equipped with heavy-duty heating and air-conditioning systems, Mathy said. The new buses also are engineered without steps and with automatic ramps for wheelchairs to make it easier for passengers to get on and off, he said. P&TS spent approximately $3.7 million to purchase the new buses, which include 14 buses that seat 32 passengers and have room for 15 additional standing passengers, and six smaller "cutaway" buses, which seat 30 passengers, Mathy said. The smaller buses will go into service in November. Administrators expect that purchasing the buses ultimately will be more cost effective than contracting with companies to provide leased buses, which the university has done since the shuttle bus service began. It also will give P&TS more control over shuttle service operation and vehicle maintenance, including safety maintenance, Mathy said. "If a particular vendor doesn't work out, we can make changes much more quickly than if we didn't own the buses," he said. The university is satisfied with the performance of the current shuttle service vendor, SFO Shuttle Bus Co., which has improved the reliability of the service in recent months, he added. The new buses "just make another big improvement," he said. The shuttles are expected to carry about 1.4 million riders during the current fiscal year, an increase of 200,000 from the previous year, Mathy said. The new buses also have been designed to accommodate a new Global Positioning System--based transportation management system, which will allow P&TS to monitor whether buses are picking up passengers on time and will allow prospective riders to connect to a website via computer, personal digital assistant or Web-enabled cell phone and find the exact location of shuttle buses and expected arrival time at bus stops, Mathy said. The department expects to launch that service early next year, said Brodie Hamilton, P&TS director. New shuttle schedules, route changes Beginning Sept. 22, minor adjustments to the A and B line schedules will be made to reflect changes in the Caltrain schedule that begin that day, Mathy said. Route adjustments also will be made, including a name change to the Park & Ride Express line, which will become the C line and provide service to Stanford West Apartments, currently on the B line. The Park & Ride Express now shuttles passengers between the Varsity, Track House and Stock Farm parking lots, the Medical Center and the Main Quad. On Sept. 22, the B line will begin operating via Welch and Quarry roads, instead of Sand Hill Road, Mathy said. The adjusted route will continue to provide service to the Stanford Shopping Center but will reduce the time it takes for shuttles to circle the campus, he said. Also beginning on Sept. 22, shuttle service to Sharon Heights and the Menlo Park Caltrain station will end. The Palm Drive Express, which shuttles passengers from the top of the Oval to the Palo Alto train station during peak commute hours, has become a permanent route, Mathy said. The express carries 500 riders a day, Hamilton said. The new schedules and routes will be available on Marguerite shuttles and on the P&TS website at http://transportation.stanford.edu.
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Brodie Hamilton and Kevin Mathy relax on a new bus. Photo: Barbara Palmer
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Stanford Report, August 20, 2003
