No more calling for Escorts!
We have created a Campus Safety Mobile Escort route that a Campus Safety employee will continually drive from 6:00 p.m. to 1:30 a.m. every night. The escort vehicle will travel a fixed route that starts at Norelius Hall and moves south and then around the east side of campus. The driver will pick up and drop off at 14 designated stops. All pickup points are designated by the yellow and black ‘Safe Rides’ sign posts. It will take the driver 15-20 minutes to drive the route picking up and dropping off students at the designated locations. Students needing an escort should stand by a designated Safe Rides sign, or the nearest building or entryway if available, and wait for the vehicle to arrive on its route. The vehicle will stop briefly, look for riders, and then move on to the next pickup point.
For more information, 24-hour medical escorts, or escorts after 1:30 a.m., call Campus Safety at 507-933-8888 (x8888).
After seeing how this system failed with the Gus Bus, I am amazed to see that Campus Safety has followed suit. One thing I have noticed:
I sat in the Library yesterday on the third floor watching through the windows towards the chapel circle. About every 20-30 minutes a Campus Safety vehicle would drive by and no one would exit or enter.
From this, two observations: I feel this system doesn’t make sense for students who may need to use an escort service. It is time consuming and really inconvenient. Second, isn’t that a huge waste of gas, which in turn places a burden on the department’s budget?
I would hope that if you find that this service doesn’t work in the students favor, that you will consider returning to the old system, or think of a new one.
I think students need to re-examine what the true purpose of an escort is. An escort is meant to enhance someone’s safety if they have to walk alone at night across campus. It is meant to get someone from point A to point B with a greater sense of safety and security. An escort is NOT a taxi service which is exactly what I believe it turned into last semester. It is strictly for those who have safety concerns about getting to a destination.
As for the question of gas, that remains to be unseen for it is a new system and the escorts were constantly giving safe rides throughout their entire shift last semester. Time will soon tell.
It truly is unfortunate, inconvenient, and time consuming for those who use the system properly, but I’m glad Campus Safety has made the change. I think a new system wouldn’t be a bad idea, but to tell you the truth, I think the old system worked fine to those who truly needed an escort.
If you would like my further opinion(s) on why I think the change has been made, post a comment. I’d be more than happy to tell you my ‘observations’ as a dispatcher. Otherwise, call Campus Safety from 8am-4:00pm for the explanation.
It is nights like tonight when I wonder why we had the original escort system in place, and then I wonder why we changed it.