University of Florida Students Rally to Restore Campus Bus Routes

(GAINESVILLE, Fla.) — More than a hundred University of Florida students rallied in Turlington Plaza on Sept. 10 to protest funding cuts to the Regional Transit System (RTS), a service many students rely on to get to and from campus.

The backlash occurred after the City of Gainesville announced in June that a new contract between RTS and UF, would move funding from the service to campus-centered transit options like the Campus Connector. As a result, the RTS annual operating budget was reduced from about $13.7 million to $9.8 million, a 28% decrease.

 The budget cuts resulted in the removal of four routes –16, 34, 35, and 711 – and adjustments to another 20 routes, leading to overcrowding and longer wait times.

 “I had a student tell me that they had a microbiology lab that they dropped because the bus from their apartment wasn’t consistent enough to get there on time,” said Ana Ferreira, a UF senior and president of Sunrise Movement GNV, one of the groups that organized the rally. 

 “A couple of students have told me they have to wait for three buses to pass before they can get on one that isn’t full,” she said.   

University officials were unavailable for comment in time for this article. A university spokesperson issued a statement to WCJB  attributing the changes to rising costs. “To ensure that every dollar is used as effectively as possible, the university conducted a comprehensive review of its transit structure,” the spokesperson said. 

The rally was preceded  by a petition from the Save RTS Coalition urging UF to reinstate funding to all RTS routes. By press time, 720 people had signed the petition on Change.org .

Two student organizations — Sunrise Movement GNV and the Young Democratic Socialists of America — formed the coalition along with the Alachua County Labor Coalition. 

“We have this petition, which is great for getting attention to an issue, but it’s not going to do anything,” Ferreira said. “So we came to the conclusion that students wanted action. And that’s how the idea of a rally came about.”  

Some students are also frustrated with the campus-specific transit option, Campus Connector, which has replaced RTS routes 122 and 127 and will supplement route 118 during the fall semester. 

“It’s not performing as well as when we had the buses running at full capacity, like last semester,” said Ace Mclain, co-political action director of Sunrise Movement GNV and a UF sophomore. 

Those involved with the movement plan to continue the momentum.

“We have to maintain pressure long term, otherwise students are going to forget, and the administration is going to let it slide under the rug,” Ferreira said.