In Wednesday's Alligator, Greg Perry asked if there was any true value gained from installing GPS on RTS buses. Mr. Perry appears to assume that the only benefit from GPS is providing knowledge about wait times to students and the community. Knowledge of wait times for students is merely an ancillary public benefit that comes with the system.
The GPS's primary functions are facilitating efficient route design when coupled with ridership information and to maintain more accurate route timing through the spacing of multiple buses on the same route.
Students will not only be able to tell when buses are coming, but should experience a more streamlined transit system as well.
The funding for this project is coming from the Student Traffic Court's reserve account, which is primarily used for capital improvements to parking and transportation on campus.
Some other projects that are commonly tackled with traffic court reserves are the construction of more covered bus shelters or repaving parking lots throughout campus.
This money comes from parking tickets and does not involve money from student tuition and fees or the state legislator.
As to the "real problems" Mr. Perry addresses in his letter, Student Government has been among the fiercest advocates for differential tuition, opposing state budget cuts, and for supporting the right of the Florida Board of Governors to make decisions about the future of higher education in Florida.
