The Safety Bus has come under fierce criticism from lone and vulnerable students since the start of the year.
Both Paul Ridyard, who has a spinal injury, and Sophie Wyllie, who was alone when she wanted to use the Safety Bus, were left disappointed and angry with the scheme.
Paul, who is a first-year journalism student, has had two bad experiences of the Safety Bus already this year. He said: “First of all I read the PDF’s from the Student Union Website saying that if I was attending the university library or “an event at Central Campus” then I could use the service. I have a spine injury and often go on my own to Central Campus. After hearing about the Safety Bus I decided to walk in the early evening, for doctor recommended exercise, and enjoy a few drinks at Source. I asked the driver about the Safety Bus and times. He said he is only taking people who have used the library and would not take me. This meant that I couldn’t stay long at Source as it was after 8pm and I had to walk home to Broadgate.”
Paul used the library the second time he tried to use the Safety Bus. He said: “I had to do some studying on Thursday evening. It was cold and raining. I headed for the 22:45 bus at 22:40. I was told by the driver I had to wait until 23:00, as he was now on a break.
“I sat down and read a newspaper. He didn’t tell me he wasn’t the 23:00 driver. I went out of the barriers and sat down inside, where other students wait for the Safety Bus in bad weather. I looked outside to the Safety Bus shelter and saw that the other Safety Bus hadn’t arrived. At 23:05 I went back through the library barriers.
Soon it was 23:10 and I made my way now to the SB, the 23:00 driver said he only picks up from the bus shelter. I’ve asked and I know students have waited just inside the library, where it’s warm, dry and safer.
At 23:15 I went to Safety Bus shelter and waited and waited – no Safety Bus. then 5 mins later the first driver came out with students that had been waiting inside. If they hadn’t been catching the Safety Bus, I would have been waiting in the cold and rain until 23:30.
“It took 40 minutes to get a ride in the Safety Bus.”
Paul said that the Chuckle Brothers could run a better service, and that he complained to the union. The union apologised and said that they were experiencing problems with the Safety Bus and that his complaint would be passed onto the university.
Third-year student Sophie Wyllie was told by library security guards that the Safety Bus prioritises library users and watched her walk home alone.
With no money for a taxi, Sophie, 21, went to use the Safety Bus, as she thought it unsafe to use the cash machine on her own.
The Journalism student said: “When I was told I couldn’t use the Safety Bus I was shocked. I thought the purpose of it was to make sure all students get home safely?”
She says she feels angry and let down by UCLan security. “The guard that spoke to me was rude and obviously didn’t care about my personal safety,” she added.
When asked, library security staff – who are employed privately and are not part of UCLan security – were unsure about the rules regarding the Safety Bus. One knew little about the service and another said that in legitimate circumstances nobody should be refused onto the bus.
He said that the Safety Bus service should not be abused, and those drunk, disorderly and kebab in hand should expect to be turned away.
The guard added that girls on their own and vulnerable are seen as priority no matter how many people are waiting.
Sophie has said that she has never had a problem using the bus before even though she was not using the library at the time however, she is aware of other female students being turned away.
The Safety Bus Code of Conduct, available from the SU website (www.uclansu.co.uk) states: “The purpose of the Safety Bus Service is to provide a reliable, free and safe means of transport home to PR1 and PR2 for students who are studying or attending an academic event on the Central Campus.”
Before the complaint from Paul was lodged with the SU, the word “academic” was not included in the code of conduct. The wording was altered this week.
Paul and Sophie’s case seem to contradict clause five of the code: “Priority is given to lone travellers and more vulnerable groups”.
Campaigns Officer Lee Bradshaw said that students should take advantage of the Take Me Home scheme when they don’t have enough money or aren’t at an academic event. He said: “The words on the code of conduct are a bit ambiguous and are open to interpretation. “Events on central campus” are intended to mean “academic events” and the wording has been changed to emphasise this. For students who do not fall into this criteria, the SU in conjunction with “Call-a-Car” offer a Take Me Home scheme”.
For this, students must have a valid UCLan corporate card. If you are out in town and don’t have enough money for a taxi and don’t want to walk home, cal Call-a-Car and they will take you home in exchange for your student card. You can then pay your taxi fare at the SU the day after to get your card back. The number for Call-a-Car is 01772 513344, and the student must inform the driver that they wish to use the Take Me Home scheme.
November 2nd, 2008 at 2:16 am
If drunk students can afford to get drunk and buy takeaways and not on books, they can afford to get a cab home.
The safety bus is not a cab service for students who can’t be bothered to walk 15-20 mins to get home.
December 10th, 2008 at 11:09 am
That’s all very well Jonty, but the service has been advertised as being available to anyone attending an event on central campus. You can’t just change the wording of the legislation and pretend there is not an issue. I work at publicity events for university, and all through the summer, students and their parents were told that the bus is available for anyone who is attending an event on campus, including at the student union. If you’re returning hom alone, even if you’ve been at Source or 53, the bus should be an option for you (unless you’re in no fit state, carrying food etc).
It’s been advertised as one thing, and being used as another. And I’m sorry, but the ‘drunk students can afford to get drunk and buy takeaways and not on books’ is short-sighted and insulting. I buy books, and work part-time, and really struggle financially at university. If my university offers a scheme that can save me a fw quid, of course I’m going to take advantage. But the main benefit of the bus, when you’ve been at Source, is that you don’t have to walk alone to get a taxi when you leave.
January 31st, 2009 at 10:37 pm
I have to say I agree with Rory on this one. When I started at UCLan, all the uni ambassadors raved about the Safety Bus service – as I did when I became a uni ambassador last summer. However, since then I’ve had several bad experiences with the service. Take tonight for example…
I decided to pop to the library for a couple of hours. I usually walk home, but knew it would be dark by the time I wanted to head home (and it’s a Saturday night) so i checked the times of the Safety Bus, and decided to get the 8.30pm service. I happily glued my nose to the books for a couple of hours, then headed outside to check the bus time.
Another student was waiting for the bus. A safety bus drove past (along plungington road) but didn’t turn into the road with the bus shelter on. At 8.40, the other student asked inside the library and was told the next service would be at 9.15, as one bus wasn’t working. (From where I was stood at the bus shelter, I could see two other uni buses sat in Harrington car park).
I went inside, and sat down with my books to wait, deciding to take the safe option and not hurry home. A driver appeared at 9.45, then set off at 9.50, with only 2/3 students, and didnt even bother to wait for me and the other student I’d waited with before, depsite both of us having said we were waiting for the Safety Bus. This driver was on his break when he set off with the bus (I overheard him talking to the security guys in the office, and one of them later confirmed when I asked).
I asked when the next service was supposed to be, and told PROBABLY at 9.15. Or maybe 9.30. If I was lucky. This would mean leaving the library an hour after I intended. I decided I’d had enough and walked home. It was freezing cold and horrible windy – and I have to walk through some pretty rough parts of town to get home, yet I still got there before I would have if I’d waited for the (possible, but somewhat unlikely) 9.30 service.
This service is touted as being the safe, reliable, free way to get home, and to allow students to make use of the (rather fantastically newly refurbished) library, and its (brilliantly flexible) opening hours. However, the university is NOT utilising its resources (stick a couple of safety stickers on the other buses, then you’re not limited to two), it is NOT improving its Safety Bus service, which continues to be unreliable.
I really didnt want to walk home on my own tonight. I passed a large group of pretty drunk, leering, guys just as i left the library, and it was thankfully a nice quiet walk home after that. But what about the next person who leaves the library only to find a cancelled or postponed service? What about someone who decides to catch the last train home on a Friday or Saturday night, only to find the Safety Bus went early, or isnt going at all?
Is it going to take something horrible to happen before this changes? If I’d been mugged tonight, I could guarantee the Safety Buses would be up and running, perfectly reliable and probably with a new improved timetable within a month.
This university is not living up to its own criteria. Improve this service, or change your advertising. An occasional, half-cocked effort at taking a few students home every now and then? Now that would have certainly put me off UCLan two years ago.