Fair higlights commuter alternatives

To some, the Muni schedule looks like it's written in some foreign language. For others, BART only brings to mind the son of Homer and Marge. Biking one block is out of the question, much less cycling uphill from downtown San Francisco to school.

The first SF State Transportation Fair last Thursday was designed to make students, staff and faculty more aware of these types of public transit and alternative ways of getting wherever they need to go.

Representatives from several Bay Area transit companies, as well as private companies and shops, set up tables in the student center and Malcolm X Plaza to spread the word to students like Ronnell Cabuslay.

"I drive to school 100 percent of the time," the San Mateo County resident said, "but I'm looking for available options for when the car breaks down."

One of those options was offered by Marie Lozinski, from Rides for Bay Area Commuters, Inc. She said Rides can match up people for carpools by using a simple questionnaire.

"A lot of students are coming from distances, and transit takes too long," Lozinski said. "Carpooling also means less cars on campus, so it's easier to find parking."

She said some students had been signed up with Rides before the fair, and about 60 students had stopped by to ask her about carpooling.

Patricia Tolar, from SFSU Connection, the campus transportation service, said that is exactly what the fair was for.

"We want to find out what students, staff and faculty want. We also want people to know that we are on campus, and we do have services to provide alternative forms of transportation."

The fair was also designed to make public transportation more alluring, with a drawing for BART and Muni passes, ride booklets from the Sausalito, Blue & Gold and Golden Gate ferries, as well as Tower Records gift certificates and a stay at the Mill Rose Inn in San Mateo.

Fun and games aside, the main point was to tout the services available for SF State students, staff and faculty.

"I was hoping there was a convenient way to get from here to BART that was faster than waiting for the bus," said Khanh Truong, an SF State student. "I knew there was a free shuttle, but I thought you had to be disabled or something -- I didn't know it was for everybody."

The shuttle service between SF State and BART, sponsored by SFSU Connection, has recently added one electric-powered shuttle from U.S. Electricar, which also had a table at the fair. Besides decreasing pollution, the electric shuttle only costs about one-fifth as much as the gas-powered shuttle. According to Tolar it costs about $500 per month for one regular shuttle, while it costs about $100 per month for the electric shuttle.

For those who want more out of their transportation than just getting from here to there, Terry Rolleri and Larry Chinn, both from the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition, were on hand to promote peddle power, as was Pree Madrigal form Nomad Cyclery.

Chinn said, "You avoid a lot of the stress of driving. When you're in a car, you're totally isolated, but it's much easier when you're on a bike to stop and talk to other people."

Madrigal agreed and added, "you don't have to worry about parking, there's no car insurance and it's a healthy form of transportation. Plus, it's cool."

Rolleri also pointed out that a bike is much less expensive to use than a car.

"There are just too many reasons to bike," Rolleri said. "What other vehicle increases the health of the user every time it's used?"

[ Golden Gater Online November 7, 1995 ]

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