Alternate modes of personal travel

Abstract

Purdue's campus in West Lafayette is trying to achieve something that at this moment in time seems impossible. They are trying to make it a bus-free campus. However, given how public transportation has became a part of life just as much as breathing and eating it is understood that this is a task that will take many years to be accomplished. Like a bad habit, Purdue's dependency on public transportation must be wheedled out one step at a time. The first step is to make the need for buses obsolete. Although convenient, they are out-dated, crowded (especially in the winter time), terrible for the environment, and not very cost effective. Purdue intends to get rid of buses on campus by introducing the EPOD, Electric Purdue on Demand. This electric mass transportation vehicle is Purdue's solution and will be used to replace Purdue's current bus system, which will benefit Purdue financially, help Purdue become a greener campus, and make life for students and faculty much more convenient.

Buses are out-dated modes of transportation. They were once cornerstones of motorized technology but it is time that they were replaced by something better and more efficient. Purdue has a contract with CityBus that cost Purdue $1,553,982 in 2009 (gocitybus.com). That accounts for about 15% of CityBus' entire 10.1 million dollar budget for that year. Considering that CityBus provides transport for the entire Greater Lafayette area, which includes Purdue, Lafayette, and West Lafayette, it doesn't seem fair that Purdue spends all of this money on CityBus when it can fund its own transportation at a third of the cost.