DUBUQUE, Iowa (AP) - Officials said a move to charge students a small fee to ride on Dubuque buses has significantly reduced complaints by other riders of bad behavior.
Before Aug. 1, students were allowed to ride the buses for free by showing school ID. Dubuque’s Transit Advisory Board was prompted to recommend creating a student fare after receiving complaints from other riders about teens being loud and profane.
City transit manager Candace Eudaley-Loebach said data indicates that there have been fewer issues on buses and at bus stops. Eudaley-Loebach said the fare has been a deterrent, according to the Telegraph Herald (https://bit.ly/2efb7oN ).
According to Dubuque police, officers have been receiving fewer calls to bus stops and fewer complaints from bus drivers about rowdy behavior.
“(That) tells us the passes have worked out as we’d hoped, deterring kids from riding the bus for the sake of filling it up and causing problems,” Eudaley-Loebach said. “The kids riding now are using it as public transportation, to get to school, sports practice, after-school and weekend jobs and activities.”
Now, students younger than 11 can get a free swipe card, while students age 11 to 18 need to either purchase $10 annual bus passes or pay 75 cents per ride. This means all passengers must either swipe cards or use cash for the fare box when entering buses. Dubuque Community School district officials said that parents have been understanding as well.
President of Hartig Drug Keith Bibelhausen said the store located adjacent to a bus stop has witnessed “dramatic improvement” after the fee change.
“We had some significant issues relative to shoplifting and vandalism,” Biebelhausen said. He said that incidents in the store have reduced now that the bus service is used only by students who need the service.
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Information from: Telegraph Herald, https://www.thonline.com
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