Bus service to “The Set” has been suspended for the next three weeks because of construction and renovation. University and city officials confirmed Tuesday that the city bus service was suspended Monday.
Officials said the renovation and the construction on “The Set” created potential traffic hazards. They also said that portion of the route was barricaded Tuesday afternoon by construction workers.
The construction workers erected a fence across Martin Luther King Blvd. to block vehicular and pedestrian traffic.
Workers also placed several orange safety cones in front of the fence to warn motorists and pedestrians that the street was blocked.
A bus operator who drives the route told The Famuan in an interview that “he received a note” stating that buses will not be routed on the FAMU campus “for the next three weeks due to construction on ‘The Set.'”
A number of students said they were unaware that construction on “The Set” would begin Tuesday afternoon.
They also said they were not notified by either the school or city officials that the Star Metro portion of the route through campus would be canceled temporarily.
“I’m mad because I wasn’t notified before,” said Kamaria Jackson, 17, a freshman political science and international affairs student from Tallahassee. “I would have been feeling stupid if I was just waiting for the bus and not knowing beforehand that a bus wasn’t coming”.
Jackson said she felt that the route’s cancellation created an “inconvenience” for her.
Jackson said she had flexibility in her schedule but since the temporary cancellation of the bus service, she does not have it anymore.
Jackson said she is a commuting freshman and relied on the city buses for transportation to and from campus.
“Now if I want to come to campus that means I have to wake up earlier and commute with my mother who likes to be at work at seven in the morning,” Jackson said.
Although routes 11 and 14 will not run through “The Set” for the next three weeks, buses are available one block away on Osceola Street.
Martha Hoover, a dispatcher at StarMetro, told The Famuan that bus routes remain in effect on Palmer Street. She also said that the bus stop on Osceola Street was available as an alternative for commuters. Hoover said that the buses would continue to run every 20 minutes from these locations.
Courtney Bradley, 18, a freshman nursing student from Miami, said it made sense that the street would be barricaded because of the construction on “The Set.” However, she agreed with Jackson that cancellation of the bus routes “creates an inconvenience to the students that need transportation.”
Paul Parker, a second year accounting student from New York, said he and other students felt that the bus route cancellations through “The Set” were not at all troublesome.
“Walking a block is no big deal. It’s not a huge detour,” Parker said. “I can understand if I was walking an extra mile but a block is no big deal.”
University police and city transportation officials said bus routes through “The Set” are scheduled to resume Monday, Oct. 1.
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