A new schedule for the Wave shuttle aims to improve mobility, on and off campus, for students at Cal State Monterey Bay (CSUMB).
Previously, CSUMB’s shuttle service only provided transportation from Main Campus to East Campus on weekdays. Starting Oct. 1 however, the Wave expanded its transportation options with a new weekend schedule.
The Wave’s weekend service runs from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays. In addition to its usual route between Main and East Campus, the weekend route stops at Promontory and North Quad. The weekend line is also extended to the Dunes Commercial Center and takes approximately 50 minutes to complete the entire route.
This means that on weekends, students now have access to off-campus amenities like Target, Cinemark, The Brass Tap, Starbucks and Chipotle, as well as the upcoming Trader Joe’s, expected to open in November.
“The introduction of the weekend shuttle will significantly improve mobility….offering students access to shopping, dining and entertainment options, such as the movie theater,” said Transportation Coordinator Raju Ceerla in an email.
According to Ceerla, the new shuttle route was added in hopes of better connecting the campus community.
“The campus is relatively isolated, especially on weekends when public transportation services are limited,” Ceerla said.
Prior to the new shuttle line, this isolation was particularly noticeable for students living in East Campus, 2 miles away from main campus and 3 miles away from the nearest groceries.
“Many students, particularly international students, do not have access to other forms of transportation. This shuttle service will fill a critical gap by providing a reliable option for weekend travel to various parts of campus and beyond,” Ceerla said.
In addition to the new shuttle route, the Wave merged its weekday Main Campus only route with the East Campus line, meaning that every bus will visit both main campus and east campus stops.
The time between buses has also been reduced from 20 minutes to 15 minutes, reducing wait times.
“It is my transportation for the most part,” said Aquilla Cloyd, a frequent rider of the Wave and a third-year journalism major. She especially values the Wave because it is a free resource that works in tandem with her efforts to reduce her carbon footprint.
As a campus shuttle regular, Cloyd views the updated weekend schedule as a chance for a “new adventure” that would incentivize her to escape the campus bubble on weekends for both practical and fun reasons.
“For me, it would be nice to not only be able to come to campus, but also be able to go get a few things from the store and then be able to come back,” Cloyd said. She also agreed that having the option to branch off campus, specifically to the Dunes Commercial Center, would inspire her to see a movie, shop or go out to eat on weekends.
Cloyd also expressed reservations about the brand-new weekend schedule largely because of how new it is. As a regular, she’s deciphered the Wave’s patterns, like the busiest time of day for each shuttle stop.
The new route could be a learning curve for those like Cloyd, and although the transition might be stressful, she believes that “Once people know the busiest times, it won’t be as bad.”