Rather than long walks to parking lots trudging steep hills in withering heat, Pierce College students should take advantage of the air conditioned courtesy shuttle bus which moves students to and from assigned campus areas every 10 minutes.
Computer Engineering major Valdaiz Hicks, 19, says he thinks the Pierce shuttle bus is perfect.
“This is terrific,” Hicks said. “This is a lot better and it helps because out here it was a long walk especially on a hot day like this.”
Most students know very little about the school’s shuttle bus, such as the bus is not only convenient but it’s free, too.
Starting off at the student drop off center, the shuttle bus has stops in performing arts parking lots east and west, Olympic Drive and Avenue of Champions.
Serra Koyshman, 19, said the shuttle bus is a “well kept secret.”
“The school bus is fantastic,” Koyshman said. “I hope they don’t cut it.”
The courtesy shuttle bus runs on school days from 7:30 a.m. – 10:30 p.m., Monday to Thursday and Friday until 3 p.m. and runs a dynamic route from the student drop of in front of the Student Services Building to the outlier areas of parking lot 7.
SMS Transportation Services shuttle bus driver Minerva Espinoza says she drives about 40-50 students per day. Pierce has a three-year contract with SMS and it costs roughly $37 per hour to provide, according to a Feb. 27, 2011. Roundup report.
Aside from the obvious reasons to take the school’s shuttle bus, kindness never goes unnoticed. Espenoza says she is more than happy to get students to their destinations as quickly and efficiently as possible.
On hot days when walking is unbearable or rainy days when you’ll get soaked, the shuttle bus is thankfully always there to make sure that Pierce College students have a ride.
“Even when my shift’s over, I stay after to make sure every student is accounted for,” Espinoza said. “I tell the students that I can take them to their destination and they ask me how much it will cost.”