A ride-along on the drunk bus yields interesting results

I waited on the curb, watching as the bright, yellow bus roared closer. It slowed to a stop, and with my co-editor Alexandra Fioravanti a step behind, I left the snowy sidewalk and climbed aboard.Our night of reporting on the late-night bus had begun, and after just a few minutes, several things made themselves very clear.

The drunk bus, as it is affectionately called by students, is a virtual smorgasbord of late-night, inebriated drama; hook-ups, break-ups, tears, laughter and shouting abound at almost any given moment. And as two more passengers on the bus, we were part of it all.

A junior I interviewed asked hopefully, "Hey, you want to take this interview to this party on Seventh Street?" Alex found herself in the middle of a fist fight. We watched sympathetically as a girl sobbed off her eyeliner onto her long-suffering boyfriend's shoulder. And we nearly fell down laughing as several senior boys, more than a little tipsy, gave an enthusiastic rendition of the Vanessa Carlton song "White Houses."

And unbelievably, that was just the beginning.

The Passengers

As the bus made stops in downtown Allegany, students started pouring onboard. Needless to say, we found no shortage of people willing to talk.

Katie, a freshman, said she adored the drunk bus.

"I thoroughly enjoy it-in fact, I love it!" she said. "I'm wearing flip-flops tonight . because of the drunk bus, I don't have to walk home in the cold!"

Junior Anne Dlugosz, 21, said she also has a good time on the drunk bus.

"I like it a lot," she said. "People sing songs, and it's hilarious. It's nice because it makes major stops - like, if you're going on campus anywhere, it's going to take you there. And even if you're not on campus, it gets you pretty close. It's convenient."

Not everyone, however, has such positive sentiments toward the drunk bus.

Omar, 20, usually prefers to walk to his apartment on Seventh Street.

"I haven't been on the drunk bus in two years," he said. "Last time I was on this bus, I got puked on, and it really pissed me off."

Senior Christina Williams said there's nothing special about the drunk bus.

"It provides kids with safe transportation from campus to the bars to home," she said. "It's just a ride. People are funny, but it's not fun."

Williams also commented on her favorite bar.

"I like the OP (The Other Place) - I get drinks faster, and people more my age go there," she said. "I like that everyone knows each other. You recognize people you have classes with and stuff."

Dlugosz said she also prefers the OP because of the dancing. An anonymous junior agreed.

"It doesn't matter how bad you dance, you are the greatest dancer in the world at the OP, especially if you've had a few drinks," she said. "Nobody judges anybody."

A 20-year-old junior excitedly declared getting interviewed made him feel like he was on "E! True Hollywood Story." He also said picking a favorite bar is impossible for him.

"I'm split. I like The Burton, I like the OP, and I like Foster's too!" he said. "Foster's is great for those up-and-coming freshmen."

The Driver

Throughout it all - the yelling, laughing, fighting and camera flashes - the driver, Paul, continued to make the rounds. One thing most people seemed to agree on was the drunk bus driver deserved some serious gratitude.

"He puts up with a lot . people screaming at him, people trying to get on the bus when it's overly packed, people banging on the roof," Williams said.

The anonymous junior agreed.

"I love the drunk bus driver," she said. "I really appreciate someone giving us a ride so no one drives drunk into town. He puts up with a lot of s***. I don't think I could do it."

Paul proves to be a man of few words, but he doesn't need

many to get his message across.

"This bus is here so you guys don't drink and drive," he said.

Paul also said many students don't respect the bus or know the policies. He said kids jump out the back door, throw up in the seats and have also broken about seven windows this semester.

Vandalism like this results in an early night for both Paul and the bus.

"That's the thing you guys (students) don't understand. if you break a window, it goes back (to the bus company)," he said. "If you puke, I'm supposed to take it back."

Paul said although he knows who does the damage, they usually get off before anything can be done about it.

"It's mostly the freshmen and sophomores, the kids who get off at Shay (Hall) and the Reilly Center," he said. "They're the ones who cause the trouble."

To Paul, no one on the drunk bus is any better than anyone else.

"There aren't any popular or unpopular kids that ride the drunk bus," he said. "Everyone's the same."

The Administration

Roger Keener, interim vice provost for student life, said the late-night bus is funded through Campus Activities with an allotment decided on by the Student Government Association. Keener said no one's fooling themselves over the true purpose of the late-night bus.

"I don't think anyone would dispute the fact that it really is to provide transportation so that the majority of people who would maybe drive under the influence aren't," he said.

Keener said he recognizes the importance of such a bus.

"Let's be real. People do drink," he said. "The less people we have driving with alcohol in their systems, even as short a distance as (from downtown Allegany to campus), the better. I believe the safer we make this campus, the better off we'll be."