Augustana students may recognize the large, red charter bus that pulls through the Carver Center drive each day. Burlington Trailways, a locally owned and operated bus company, is the sole transportation provider that has a stop on campus.
While many students use the service, they have a love-hate relationship with the company.
“There are students who depend on it, so it’s convenient that Augie charters with them,” said senior Jess Raines, “but it’s very inconvenient when it’s consistently an unreliable service.”
The two most popular destinations are Naperville and Chicago, since many students hail from the surrounding neighborhoods.
Most students claim it’s not the entire company that makes it undesirable, but specific concerns. They attribute their dissatisfaction with three key complaints, price, punctuality and overbooking.
The ticket price is $50 dollars one way, which is expensive, especially when people are forced to sit in the aisle.
Some students had such a negative experience that they refuse to use Trailways again. Even with the inconsistencies, many students are obligated to use the service due to its close proximity and lack of other options. However, they would consider using another service if that option were available.
“I personally don’t mind Burlington Trailways because I live in Chicago, and I’m used to the public transportation over there,” said sophomore Karina De La Rosa. “Right now, I have not been taking the bus because it is really expensive and I can’t afford it.”
Others have mixed reviews, like sophomore John Lechuga, also a Chicago native, especially considering the trend of overbooking.
“For the most part it is a good service, but they do not prepare very well for breaks,” said Lechuga. “For example, Christmas break when a lot of Augustana Students and University of Iowa students will be taking the bus, it causes overbooking.”
Overbooking isn’t consistent with Burlington Trailways’s mission, which, according to their website, claims they “go beyond the standards set by the government for safety, quality and compliance.”
“I have ridden an overbooked bus about three times,” said sophomore Victoria Gillon. “It sucks because you might pay for a seat and not receive one.”
While the process proved frustrating for some, others realized the system is solely an issue of ticketing.
“The drivers are nice, and they keep things going, but the system is pretty bad especially with booking tickets,” said sophomore Harrison Smith.
The company has gone through recent changes, including post boarding tickets and luggage tags to prevent overbooking.