There is a bus missing. It was a familiar OATS bus that was always parked outside Thompson Commons on Friday afternoons.

At first, I attributed its absence to the beginning of the semester. The Park Student Government Association, like the rest of the campus, takes a little time to settle down once the semester gets underway. So, initially I was not worried. However; I just found out that the bus service has been scrapped completely in a vote by PSGA last week.

So let’s start with a little full disclosure. As a graduate student, I am no longer a member of the PSGA. Every undergraduate student at Park is a member. You should not ignore PSGA because part of your $50 activity fee every semester goes into Senate coffers. I was also a former PSGA president and a longtime senator. The bus was my pet project together with a former Vice President Kelvin Igumbor.

The bus service was started for the simple reason that Kansas City has the worst public transportation system I have seen of any major city in the U.S. and I have been around the block. There is something that pretends to be a bus route in KC called the Metro.

There is a question and answer segment in The Pitch magazine that I enjoy. Finish this sentence, “Kansas City screwed up when…?” The inevitable answer often is “Kansas City screwed up when it failed to build a good public transit system.”

Over the years, there has been talk of building a street car system. Last year, something finally came through. But the result will only be a two-mile street car at the Country Club Plaza.

I understand it is to ease congestion in the Plaza district and expand the economic opportunities there. But we should realize that it is not enough. It does nothing to help the city’s underserved population.

The reason Kansas City has a bad public transportation system is clear to me – Kansas Citians love their cars. This city has the highest number of highway miles per capita for a major metropolitan system in the U.S. There seems to be no effort from car owners to push for something beneficial to the entire city. And, this raises the question if Park is any different.

There are other reasons why Park students need the bus. First, Park University does not have a bus of its own. The school hires outside transportation for its events.

Secondly, not everyone owns a car that comes to Park. There is always a large contingent of new international students that come each semester. For an international student to acquire a driving license they need a social security number and it usually takes at least one month for the International Student office to issue a letter. This letter is required by the Social Security Service to get a driving license. And, then you need a few weeks for driving lessons for those who never had the opportunity or ability to drive in their home countries.

For me, a car was a difficult contraption even though I lived in a city in Kenya with many cars before coming to the U.S.

While navigating this new car culture, where are these students supposed to go? The OATS bus wasn’t a taxi that took each student home. It simply provided transportation to Wal-Mart, Hy-Vee and Zona Rosa once a week. In Parkville, if you need a tooth brush you cannot just walk to a store to get it.

The composition of PSGA right now includes residential students, American students and upperclassmen international students. I know the school is in a financial crunch but I don’t think this is the case for PSGA.

The bus does have it regulars including myself. However, I am not alone. I would urge the Senators who voted against the bus to hand in their car keys for just a week and let’s see how they survive in the KC area. Please save our bus. To make your voice heard, email PSGA at [email protected].