While Centre Area Transportation Authority authorities say they try to keep Loop buses on schedule, some Penn State students are annoyed at the delays.
Drivers' schedules sometimes conflict with the time they're given for a rotation, at times leaving students waiting for the bus.
In an attempt to keep space between the various CATA Loop buses, drivers have a scheduled time from which they are supposed to depart from their starting points.
The starting point for the Campus Loop falls between South Fraser Street and Allen Street, across from Irving's Bagels, 110 E. College Ave., and the Town Loop begins its cycle in front of Schlow Library.
Steve Crownover, CATA's operation supervisor, said each driver must fulfill his or her allotted time for a cycle to allow the buses to keep equal distance between each other.
Drivers may choose to sit on the bus and read, or step off for a breath of fresh air, Crownover said. This sometimes leaves students with no choice but to wait for an undisclosed amount of time before the bus takes off again.
Stephanie Samson (sophomore-communications) recognizes the need for drivers to keep on schedule but feels annoyed by having to wait.
"It upsets me when I'm running late, to sit and wait for the driver," Samson said. "I understand why they stop and it makes sense; however, it doesn't mean it's any less frustrating."
Drivers have 24 minutes to complete their loops around campus, Crownover said. While he recognizes the average bus makes it's way around campus in about 25 minutes, he said those numbers are based on the assumption of a certain amount of traffic as well as a heavy flow of students using the Loop.
"If we make it to the start of the cycle before the 24 minutes has passed, we have to wait there (until we catch up)," said CATA driver Rick Shutt.
Shutt, who drives the Town Loop, said students never wait long, because most of the time traffic prevents them from getting to the beginning of the rotation with time to spare.
Marc Hackenberry, a Campus Loop driver, echoed Shutt's comments.
"We have to keep space between all the buses," Hackenberry said.
With four buses running on 24-minute cycles, buses should be stopping every six minutes, and while Crownover said he understands this time frame does not always work out exactly, Evan Abramson (sophomore-computer engineering), believes the schedule doesn't work out at all.
"I've waited for the Loop for 15 minutes before," Abramson said. According to Crownover's calculations, a Loop should never be stopped for more then four minutes, including during off-peak hours, when the drive is expected to take as few as 21 minutes for a rotation. Abramson also disputes this idea.
"There have been times when I've sat on the bus for 10 minutes, and I realize that at times the drivers are changing shifts, but it still (makes me angry)," he said.
