The GoBus is a convenient mode of transportation for anyone to travel within Ohio cities. Many Ohio University students ride the GoBus to get home, whether it drops them off at an airport or in their hometown.
With prices ranging from $5–30 depending on distance and only a $2.50 online processing fee, usually, it is viewed as an easy and reasonably priced way to travel from campus to home. However, during the holiday season, GoBus travel increases tremendously, making it more of a hassle for students to go home.
Started in 2010, the bus service is federally funded and administered by Hocking Athens Perry Community Action’s Transportation Division. The GoBus offers rides daily between 36 cities spanning across Ohio. Since parking spots on OU’s campus are so limited, this travel opportunity can be crucial for many.
Gavin Carrig, a sophomore studying journalism, is from Eastlake, Ohio, which is a little under four hours away from Athens. He commented on how useful the GoBus can be to go home for a weekend or scheduled breaks without a car on campus.
"I looked into getting parking, but certain spots are so expensive,” Carrig said. “It’s (the GoBus is) really convenient because it’s not too much of a hassle to buy a ticket ... you don’t actually have to drive to and from home.”
However, this convenience is slowed down by the influx of travelers during the holiday season. For OU students, the hardest part is landing a ticket on a bus that leaves at a desired time.
Anthony Velotta, a freshman studying marketing, is from around Cleveland, and usually must book his GoBus tickets around two weeks in advance. During the holidays, that is pushed to be even earlier.
“(It is) definitely harder to book it during the holidays,” Velotta said. “Everybody’s trying to go home, and it’s more convenient for the parents to not have to drive all the way down here.”
A positive of GoBus travel is that prices do not increase with busy weekends. According to the GoBus website, to buy a ticket from Athens to Cleveland is $25 on both Nov. 29, an unpopular travel day, and Dec. 15, the last day of finals week and a popular day for OU students to take the GoBus.
These affordable tickets only mean they sell much quicker during the holidays. Students must also plan their holiday transportation while studying for finals and picking last-minute gifts for friends and family members.
Gabbie Weil, a freshman studying journalism, is from Gahanna, which is a little over an hour away from Athens. She needs to book her tickets further in advance for breaks than an ordinary weekend.
“If I’m leaving to go home for a break, you have to get your tickets pretty far in advance, so two or three weeks I’d say,” Weil said. “But, if I’m just going home on a random weekend, I can get them (the tickets) the week of.”
Overall, students seem to have a positive experience with GoBus despite the increased holiday travel. The one criticism many have is the length of time the GoBus routes take.
For example, it takes around three hours and 20 minutes to drive from OU to the Greyhound bus station in Cleveland, but due to multiple stops it takes around five hours and 25 minutes on the GoBus route. These continuous stops are part of the GoBus model, but also easily annoy passengers.
“The big thing is those stops in between where no one’s getting out and no one’s getting off,” Carrig said. “It does add a lot of time to the trip because some stops are in the middle of nowhere or out of the way.”
Despite the hectic nature of the GoBus during the holiday season, students favor the GoBus as an easy way to get home.
“At the end of the day, it's really convenient (and) works out for me and my family,” Weil said. “My family doesn't have to drive all the way to OU, and I just have to endure 40 extra minutes of sitting and doing homework or listening to music.”
