ECU TRANSIT TO CURB BUS ROUTES

East Carolina University Student Transit Services will curb several late night routes in wake of the fuel shortage and Gov. Mike Easley’s mandate to avoid non-essential travel.

ECU Transit Adviser Scott Alford said, effective

immediately, buses that normally stop running at 3:30 a.m. will now stop running at 12:30 a.m. Bus routes that are most affected, Alford said, are those that run after 6:30 p.m.

“The governor has asked all state agencies to curtail non-essential travel, and we are doing our part with that,” Alford said. “Getting to class is essential, and so we plan to curtail a few late night routes and continue our other routes. Passengers may see a minute or two delay at their bus stop.”

ECU’s Blue line, which runs from campus to Carolina Bowl, Lowe’s Foods and Wal-Mart, and the Pirate Express line, a late night route that goes from campus to downtown to area apartment complexes, will not run over the holiday weekend.

On Labor Day, the university is closed, and the Pirate Ride bus service will begin at 6:30 p.m. Bus routes to ECU’s freshman parking lot off Dickinson Avenue will also be limited throughout the long weekend. A curtailed schedule is in place through the Labor Day weekend, Alford said, and could continue pending the fuel situation after Sept. 5.

Alford said that, while nighttime schedule cutbacks enable ECU to conserve fuel, students might want to consider taking the bus to help cut down on overall costs.

“This is a way students can save money. Ride the bus, save gas,” Alford said. “If a full bus comes to campus, that’s 50 car trips that didn’t happen.”

For more information on bus routes at ECU, visit http://www.transit.ecu.edu. Click here for the curbed schedule.