Emily Leach is the opinion editor of the Daily Titan. All opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not reflect the opinions of the Daily Titan as a whole.<\/p>\n
Cal State Fullerton\u2019s \u201ccommuter school\u201d label fosters a culture of constant movement. Bustling traffic and the constant battle for a parking spot can make the $334 parking permit price tag a hefty financial burden among the array of fees students are responsible for.<\/p>\n
With around 97% of students living off campus, overlooking alternative transportation directly limits students\u2019 ability to realize their potential success on campus. As a designated \u201ccommuter school,\u201d CSUF must fulfill its responsibility of providing and promoting accessible public transportation options for its students.<\/p>\n
CSUF prides itself on its mission to empower current and aspiring Titans. These empowerment efforts should extend beyond school spirit and community building to address the difficulty of getting to that said environment.<\/p>\n
Melissa Baez, the academic advisor for urban learning at CSUF, explained that student success hinges on the university\u2019s ability to address student needs.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur students say yes in their offer of being admitted because\u2026 there\u2019s something about our university that draws them in,\u201d Baez said. \u201cAnd so, given that we\u2019re welcoming them in, it\u2019s important that we give back to them, too.\u201d<\/p>\n
CSUF\u2019s focus on its local student body positions university leaders to acknowledge a need for a more effective way of commuting, including options that expand beyond Southern California’s traditional transit culture, which heavily revolves around personal vehicles.<\/p>\n
The underuse of public transportation by college students is also perpetuated by the underfunding of public transit in California.<\/p>\n
With major deficits and funding shortfalls facing California\u2019s public transit network, commuter systems such as Metrolink have had to cut programs like the Student Adventure Pass, which offered free transportation to verified students, and instead opt for 50% reduced-rate programs.<\/p>\n
Olivia Hernandez, a second-year business administration and political science major, stated that a lack of marketing resulted in a missed opportunity of money saved on public transportation.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Adventure Pass was super beneficial to a lot of people. The thing is, the only reason why I didn\u2019t use it was because I didn\u2019t realize it was available,\u201d Hernandez said. \u201cIf I did know, I would have used that because I did take the bus for two or three semesters. That was a good $200, $300 I could have saved.\u201d<\/p>\n
CSUF is currently partnered with the Orange County Transportation Authority to offer the University Bus Pass. For a prepaid amount of $100 per semester, the U-Pass offers transportation to local universities.<\/p>\n
Though the U-Pass offers a cost-effective alternative for students, CSUF\u2019s lack of promotion for this mode of transportation leaves the pass unutilized by many who may benefit from it.<\/p>\n
\u201cI had to find out on my own, and I think I got lucky that another student told me that you can actually purchase a bus pass,\u201d Hernandez said. \u201cI thought I was going to have to pay two dollars every ride.\u201d<\/p>\n
CSUF\u2019s offer of reduced public transportation rates is rendered ineffective when not properly promoted. Since student resources are already frequently underutilized, many unknowingly let affordability pass them by due to a lack of promotion.<\/p>\n
With students spending nearly 17% of their college funds on transportation, taking public transit to school proves to be no cheap feat.<\/p>\n
Srihita Kotturi, a second-year biology major, expressed the solace that reduced transportation rates have, given her frequent trips from her on-campus housing to her hometown.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause I go home so frequently, I hate spending that much money. But, I don\u2019t really have a choice, I have to go home,\u201d Kotturi said. \u201cSo it would be a lot more, I guess, relieving in a way if there were cheaper options, because I do not need to be spending that much money.\u201d<\/p>\n
Additional transportation costs piled upon the minimum $25,000 necessary to attend CSUF overwhelms the financial stresses university students are already experiencing.<\/p>\n
If students are subject to an underfunded, underpromoted and unreliable public transit system, fewer students will be eager to utilize these alternative means of transportation.<\/p>\n
A university built for a commuter population must provide infrastructure designed to support student transportation needs. Dismissing the vitality of public transit options to prioritize CSUF\u2019s car culture ultimately thwarts the success of students without access to their own personal transportation.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Emily Leach is the opinion editor of the Daily Titan. All opinions expressed in this article are those…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":160597,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[163,165,164,30623,6996,1815,53123,3766],"class_list":["post-160596","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-anaheim","tag-anaheim","tag-anaheim-headlines","tag-anaheim-news","tag-bus","tag-cars","tag-college","tag-commuter","tag-transit"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/160596","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=160596"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/160596\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/160597"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=160596"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=160596"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=160596"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}