WHAT’S INSIDE
NEWS 1-3
OPINION 4
CULTURE 5–6
SPORTS 8–10 I SSU E
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The Independent Student Voice of Boise State Since 1933
Volume 23
First Issue
F R E E OCTOBER 14, 2010
Broncos to face Spartans in San Jose
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Why is the word "like" loaded?
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Why you shouldn't text and drive!
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ARBITERONLINE.COM
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Heck, it's free How to: Use the Boise Bus system Suzanne Craig Journalist
1. Get yourself a sticker
There's no typo, the Boise buses are free to students. The only thing necessary to get free bus rides for the rest of the academic year is to go to the information desk in the SUB and ask for a bus sticker. They will take your student ID and put a shiny silver sticker on it that says "BUS 10-11." You do not need to get a new one every semester, but getting a fresh sticker every fall is a good idea.
2. Figure out your route
PHOTOS BY CODY FINNEY/THE ARBITER
Brian Wilson, a freshman culinary arts major scribbles, while riding the Boise State shuttle leaving Parkview Apartments Monday. Meanwhile, Rachael Killeen (left), listens to music and Rae Wald secures her cake.
'Riders thwart off global warming, cooling, too sTEPHANIE SCHEIBE Journalist
While a car may be a convenient mode of transportation, more students are realizing the advantages of taking the bus. Despite having her own vehicle, Jessica Brookhouse, 21, takes the bus to campus everyday. “I take the bus because it’s free transportation,” Brookhouse said. “Just to save the environment a little.” Students who bike to campus also reap the benefits of having a free public transit system. Lin Wang, 29, also takes the bus to and from campus. “Sometimes I ride my bike,” Wang said. But she enjoys the convenience of the bus when the weather is bad, especially through the winter months. While many students take the bus to just save money or to lessen their carbon footprint, others depend on the bus system to get to and from school. Mariana Morale said she rides the bus because she doesn’t have a car. Without the bus system, she would have to figure out another way to get to campus. For information, visit http://valleyride.org.
WASHINGTON - With the weak economy driving voter discontent three weeks out from congressional and state elections, President Barack Obama Monday renewed his call to spend an additional $50 billion on improving the nation's transportation infrastructure. His plan calls for rebuilding 150,000 miles of roads -- "enough to circle the world six times" -- laying and maintaining 4,000 miles of railways, restoring 150 miles of airport runways and advancing a new air-traffic control system. Obama said that America's crumbling infrastructure weakens our economy and leaves the nation trailing foreign competitors in investment, including China, Russia and Europe. By embarking soon on the infrastructure buildup, he said, "we will create good, middle-class jobs right now."
Obama's push comes with the nation's overall unemployment rate which is stuck at 9.6 percent. Voters are upset about the economy and job losses, but they're also unhappy about federal budget deficits and the skyrocketing national debt. The deficit for fiscal 2010, which ended Sept. 30, was $1.3 trillion, the second highest since World War II, according to an estimate last week from the Congressional Budget Office. The highest came the preceding year, at $1.4 trillion. Obama said "this plan will be paid for. It will not add to our deficit over time," but that depends upon Congress, which hasn't taken the plan up yet. Obama spoke upon release of a new report by the Treasury Department and Council of Economic Advisers, which concluded that U.S. infrastructure "is not keeping pace" with economic demand and Americans' expectations, and that now would be a "particularly timely and beneficial" time to
spend more. The report said Obama's plan would create middle-class jobs, primarily in construction, manufacturing and retail trade. The report also said for 9 in 10 Americans today, transportation costs eat up nearly 17 cents of every dollar of income. "Nearly 1 in 5 construction workers is still unemployed and needs a job," Obama said. "And that makes absolutely no sense at a time when there's so much of America that needs rebuilding." With Congress out until mid-November, then back only briefly, there's no realistic prospect for action on the president's proposal this year. Some Republicans are openly hostile, saying that Obama's $814 billion stimulus program, which passed last year, was supposed to improve infrastructure and create jobs, but hasn't done enough. Rep. John Mica of Florida, the top Republican on the House of Representatives
3. Find out where to board
Now that you know the schedules and have picked your first destination, you are completely ready to go except for one little detail, where the bus stops are on campus. Two of the most heavily used bus stops are on University Drive in front of the Administration Building. On the schedules, the one listed as “BSU Admin,” refers to the one on the side of the street closest to the Administration Building. The one listed as “University and Joyce,” is across the street diagonally from the first stop and is closer to Joyce Street by a few yards. Most of the routes through campus stop at both of these stations, with the difference usually being 15 or 20 minutes, but not all. So if you have any doubts, there are signs by the stops that list the routes numbers that go through there. Also, you can always ask the bus driver what their route number is.
4. Make a trip happen
Once you are on the bus, heading to your destination, make sure to keep an eye out for the stop before yours. In some cases, the bus does not stop at every single place listed on their route if no one is standing there to be picked up, so they have yellow strips of plastic or some other signaling strip that you need to press to signal that you want the next stop. Do not press this when your own stop is within sight; press it when you have just passed the stop before yours. Bus drivers need the warning and do not appreciate having to suddenly pull over because a passenger wasn’t paying attention.
Obama pushes infrastructure plan to create jobs McClatchy News
The next step to getting anywhere using the buses is knowing the routes. There are two ways to do this. The first is to go to the Transportation and Parking Services office on the first floor of the Lincoln Parking Garage. They have a wide selection of paper bus schedules for you to choose from, most of which have stops on campus. The second method is to go to their website, http://valleyride.org, where they post the most up to date schedules and maps.
Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, called the new report "pitiful." He also said that more than 60 percent of infrastructure funding in the stimulus act has yet to be spent. He said he'd be happy to work with Obama and his advisers "when they return to planet Earth with both feet on the ground." Obama insisted that America's outdated highway, air and rail systems are taking a toll on the economy in lost productivity. As a percentage of GDP, Obama said, U.S. investment in infrastructure is less than half of Russia's and a third of Europe's. He said that China will build dozens of new airports in the next decade. Such investments show that other countries are "creating jobs today, but they're also playing to win tomorrow." "So there's no reason why we can't do this," Obama said. "This is America. We've always had the best infrastructure."
How to use the Bronco Shuttle
Bronco shuttle is a smaller bus that goes around campus and across Capitol to Park View and other off campus apartments. This shuttle is also free with valid Boise State ID, and though a bus sticker is not necessary for this shuttle, it is a good idea to get one just in case you ever need to take the bus. Students who frequently ride the bus or shuttle have no complaints. “It’s always really quiet, nothing bad or weird has ever happened,” said Kajsa Goudjil, a junior Business and Language major. The bus drivers agree that it is usually a calm route. “A scary incident was when I was pulling up to an intersection and looking to the left, since I was going to turn right, and I almost didn’t see the girl who shot in front of me on her bike. I almost hit her, but that sort of thing is rare,” Jim Baxter, shuttle driver, said. If an emergency happens, grab a cab (it's free too). For students who commute either by walking, bicycle or bus there is another option if an emergency comes up and you need to get home quickly. The Guaranteed Ride Home program is one that is designed for commuters that don't use a car. The program is that if there is an emergency, you can call a taxi and after paying the taxi up front, you can submit your receipt to be reimbursed if you have registered with the program. A link on the Transportation and Parking Services’ Transportation Options page (make this link) will take you to the Ada County page where the registration form is available.
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