The university has implemented changes to the bus system on campus, including different routes, fewer stops and a new tracking app called TransLoc.
In the spring of 2023, UD Transportation Services hired a transportation consultant to review the bus system. After reviewing the system and interviewing students on changes they wished to see, the consultant recommended three main changes: reduce the amount of time passengers must spend on the bus before getting to their primary destination, correlate the number of running buses with the number of students using the bus and eliminate less popular stops in order to speed up the buses.
In accordance with the consultant’s recommendations, the university modified the bus system, consolidating the lines into three main routes, eliminating stops like Ray Street and reducing the total loop time of each line.
“They looked really closely at the ridership data and helped us to focus in,” Associate Vice President of Facilities Tom Flood said. “There’s almost a bell curve of ridership distribution through each day, and what you want to make sure you do is run the most buses when you have the most people so that you’re really maximizing the service to the students.”
According to UDaily, the new system has replaced multiple old routes with new, less time-consuming ones. The North/South College Route has become the North South Express, the Academy North/Central Loop is now the North Central Express and the East and West Loops have been combined into the new Apartment Express route.
Sienna Ryan is a sophomore wildlife ecology and conservation major at the university. She calls herself an “avid user” of the bus system, having used it since her first semester on campus.
“I would say so far, the amount of buses isn’t as bad because of the new routes, but I think there’s a lot of problems with having these new routes,” Ryan said. “It seems like they were really trying to save every penny they possibly could.”
Ryan specifically cited two main issues with the new routes, one being the absence of the Ray Street stop.
“So many upperclassmen live in Ray Street,” Ryan said. “I understand traffic gets bad […], but it’s kind of annoying to have to walk every time because it’s not just a straight walk. Either you take the bridge, the stairs or the trail ramp. If it’s really cold, if it’s really hot, if there’s ice and we’re on a trail on a hill? That’s dangerous.”
Ryan also voiced concerns about overcrowded buses on the North South Express.
Flood reports that the number of buses on a route is correlated to the number of students using it at the time, saying there are “as many as four” buses heading to STAR Campus at times. As of last week, he says there is “no record of any buses being standing room only.”
Another major change made to the busing system was a switch in the app students use to track the buses. Previously, students used DoubleMap, but with the new system came a new app called TransLoc. DoubleMap was originally implemented in 2019.
Stella Pettit, a sophomore studying wildlife ecology and conservation, is not a fan of the new app. She conceded that DoubleMap was not ideal, but that TransLoc is more difficult to use.
“TransLoc is never loaded correctly,” Pettit said. “I never know if [buses] are going up or down and it just feels overly complicated.”
Flood said that the app change was due to a long-term contract with a company that decided to make the switch. He relayed the university’s plan to find a new bus app for next year.
“[TransLoc] is not our favorite either, but we’re a little bit stuck with it at the moment,” Flood said.