Unending Trouble Between the Students and the Shuttle Bus Service

Students are still curious why the buses do not run on schedule

Managing Editor Seo Yun-chan

danseo123@naver.com

Since Busan University of Foreign Studies is located on a mountain, students come to the campus on various forms of transportation. BUFS also provides a shuttle bus so students can get easier access to school.

The shuttle buses run 109 times a day during the semester. During summer and winter vacations, a limited service is provided. During the semester, the first bus starts at 8:12am, and the last leaves at 10:12pm., whereas during vacation sessions, the first bus starts at 8:35am and the last bus departs at 5:20pm. The shuttle bus starts from Campus Church, then stops at Ardour House, Beomeo Temple Station, Namsan Station, Namsan Fire Station, and then heads back to the campus.

However, there have been many complaints with regards to these shuttle buses. Students have complained that the shuttle buses do not come to the bus stop at the designated times. Students check the time schedule and wait at the bus stop in front of the Campus Church accordingly, but the shuttle buses rarely keep the time. Students even complained that sometimes, two shuttle buses come at the same time. This random system has made the students angry. They say that it is better to take the normal city buses, such as the number 301 or Geumjeong number three bus.

The General Affairs Team of BUFS is aware of the matter. They said that they have also received a lot of complaints regarding this matter. They said, "Many students have called us to complain about the situation. The main reason for this problem is that before the last semester started, the company we work with changed. Therefore, the bus drivers were not correctly informed about the time schedule. On May, 2022, we delivered them the right schedule and the maps."

They also stated, "Previously, the time schedule just had the time the buses were supposed to start. The students thought that the posted time was the time that the buses would arrive next to the Campus Church. On the other hand, the bus drivers thought that the times posted were the times they should set off from the parking lot next to the soccer field. Since we had to guarantee the drivers designated break time, the communication got a little twisted. Now the bus drivers know that the time posted is the time buses need start from the bus stop, they start from the parking lot a little bit earlier. After this correction was made in May, complaints have decreased. The time table also shows that the time posted on the table is based on the bus stop in front of the Campus Church."

When asked why there is no contact information on the shuttle bus homepage, they said, "We were not aware of that, since students somehow always managed to contact our office. However, it is true that there is no contact information on the shuttle bus homepage. We will add a phone number so that students can easily contact us."