Evening Van Services shuffles schedules
By Daily Bruin Staff
Oct. 22, 1996 9:00 p.m.
Wednesday, October 23, 1996
ROUTE:
Noise, waiting time concerns prompt changes in van stopsBy Toni
Dimayuga
Daily Bruin Contributor
In a reaction to complaints of noise, UCLA’s Evening Van
Service, a vanpool that provides safe rides at night for students
and faculty, has altered some of its routes.
The service, sponsored by Transportation Services, a subdivision
of Business Enterprises, made adjustments to provide faster service
to riders by relocating some stops and removing others, said Sgt.
John Adams, manager of the Community Service Officer program.
Provided for the UCLA community as a means of increasing safety,
the Evening Van Service’s seven vehicles stop at areas such as the
residence halls, surrounding apartments and on campus.
Three of the vans travel in a clockwise direction, and three
others travel in the opposite direction. The seventh, called a
rover van, is used to pick up extra people during busy periods.
The changes were initially in response to residents living on
Malcolm Avenue, near Hilgard Avenue, who complained about noise
caused by the vans as they drove by at night, Adams said. As a
result, the vans removed Malcolm Avenue from their route,
relocating the stop to Parking Structure 2.
Additional changes involved eliminating unnecessary stops to cut
down on waiting time, explained Warren Allen, a fifth-year history
student and Evening Van Service supervisor.
Allen said that the vans no longer stop in front of Dykstra Hall
because of infrequent use and the small turnaround that made it
awkward for drivers to maneuver the van. In addition, left turns in
and out of Dykstra tended to hold up traffic.
The vans also used to stop by the flagpole at Portola Plaza and
then at Bunche Hall. Because stops about two blocks apart did not
make sense, Allen said, the flagpole stop has been changed to
Murphy Hall.
There has been little feedback from passengers, Adams said,
since many are still unaware of the route change.
Allen said that during the first few weeks, drivers were still
picking up riders from old stops to inform them of the changes.
In addition, new maps are distributed in all the vans, residence
halls, and in the Transportation Services office.
"There’s still a little confusion, but that’s to be expected,"
Allen said. "I didn’t think these little changes would make a big
difference."
Despite lack of feedback, Allen claimed that the subtle stop
alterations have increased passenger turnout.
He explained that there were more riders during the first three
weeks of this fall quarter  between 3,300 and 3,400 a week
 than the beginning of last spring quarter, when roughly
2,400 passengers used the service each week.
Allen attributes the increase in riders to the decrease in
waiting time, which had generated complaints last year.
Despite the new stop changes, some students believe that
additional measures should be taken to increase passenger safety.
Shraddha Parekh, a fifth-year English and Asian Studies student who
lives in a Glenrock apartment, suggested that the vans add a stop
between poorly lit streets.
"They only stop on the corner of Glenrock and Levering and
Landfair and Ophir. It’s really far from my apartment, so I have to
walk anyway. It’s not a very well-lit street, so it’s dangerous,"
Parekh said.
The vans are in operation 6 p.m. to midnight, Monday-Thursday.
During 10th and finals weeks, the vans run every day through
Thursday of finals.
