Riding the bus to and from Route 1 has become an institution for students looking to have a good time on weekend nights.
But just like downtown College Park — which has weathered the closing of three bars in the past eight months — the late-night Shuttle-UM “drunk bus” may not be what it used to be.
In the months since the scandal-plagued Thirsty Turtle surrendered its liquor license in November, surrounding businesses have seen fewer customers, and the Department of Transportation Services has had to shuttle fewer underclassmen between North Campus and downtown, according to a review of DOTS ridership data.
The Orange Line, the most direct route between the two locations, saw 16 percent fewer riders after an October crackdown on underage drinking, according to the DOTS data. The Blue Line, which connects Stamp Student Union, the University View and the Knox Boxes by way of downtown, aw a 20 percent decline. The Purple Line, which passes through North Campus on its way from University Courtyards to downtown, had ridership decrease by 21 percent. But the Green Line, which travels through the student-heavy Old Town neighborhood across Route 1 from the campus, has seen essentially no change.
The late-night buses “are still being used,” DOTS Assistant Director Beverly Malone said, “but the closing of Turtle has definitely had an impact.”
Malone added the DOTS ridership figures show only the total number of riders on a bus route and not where they got on or off, but the buses’ remaining riders didn’t hesitate to identify the reason for the trend.
“I rode the bus a lot before, but I don’t have a reason to since Turtle closed,” said freshman communication major Shelbi Austin.
Gina DiLello, a junior chemistry major who frequently rides the Purple Line because she lives in Courtyards, has also seen fewer people riding the bus at night.
“Freshmen would be doing flips on the bus and stuff, but now I don’t see any of that,” she said.
The buses have also seen a decline in ridership on weeknights, and freshman letters and sciences major Kevin Haines attributes that to Turtle’s closing as well.
“You see less people, especially on Tuesdays and Thursdays when the bars would have specials,” he said.
Still, despite the numbers as evidence, some insist the “drunk bus” is as popular as ever. Shuttle-UM driver Will Powell, who frequently handles the evening routes, said he has not seen a considerable change and that the Purple Line can usually get a “decent flow going.”
Senior education major Holly Nielson had a simpler way of looking at it.
“It’s always obnoxious and loud, that’s all I know,” she said.
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