UConn Transportation Services is making adjustments mid-semester to serve students (Ryan Murace/The Daily Campus)
Just last week, UConn Transportation Services reinstituted the Red Line bus route, which will provide students with a key route to central campus along Glenbrook Road. This is especially useful for students who live in Towers or Hilltop Apartments but might need transportation to the Gentry building, Austin building or the science and engineering complex. It is therefore enormously important that the university continues to open these crucial services for its students as soon as construction allows.
With construction on North Eagleville Road, traffic on Glenbrook Road has been one way for quite some time, which is why Red Line was shut down in the first place. Without Red Line, transportation into central campus via Glenbrook Road was rather limited. Green Line would stop on this route, but it does not service the Towers or Hilltop community, and passengers would have to ride around the entirety of campus from Busby Suites to Mansfield Apartments if they chose this line. Silver and Purple Lines also service the southeast and northwest sections of campus, and they do not bring students near central campus – at least the section where their classes are located. Red line contrarily services the northeast and west-southwest areas of campus, taking students past Castleman, Gentry, and the Chemistry building.
Not only will students have easier access to some of their classes; Red Line will also provide a direct route to the infirmary, Wilbur Cross, and other important services. While Blue Line does provide service for students living in Towers and Hilltop, it does not give them direct access to these buildings.
Before the return of red line, UConn compromised with its absence by running more buses on the Blue and Green lines. However, diversity of bus routes is more important to UConn students than the quantity of buses. While this is not too necessary right now, it will be in the coming winter months when it becomes more difficult and more dangerous for students to be walking to class. The University’s efforts should therefore be focused on returning the old bus lines to UConn students and completing any construction that is inhibiting this goal.
