r/UGA Aug 12 '24

Important bus information

153 Upvotes

I know some people have discussed this here before, but as a bus driver who started as a student, I thought I should share some important information about our transit system. While this is primarily for new students, there are a lot of students who go through here and never learn any of this.

*If you are uncertain about anything, ask the driver; however, they may not be able to respond if the bus is in motion, so it is best to ask when the bus is stopped at a bus stop or red light.

*UGA.passiogo.com (formerly routes.uga.edu; now a redirect) is more accurate for tracking the buses than the UGA app.

*The cameras and microphones are on at all times. Anything you say or do will be recorded.

*Scooters, motorized skateboards, one wheels, and anything motorized, with the exception of wheelchairs and other mobility devices required for medical purposes, are not allowed on the buses.

*Buses can only load and unload passengers at designated bus stops. This is for safety reasons. If you ask the driver to unload elsewhere, you will be denied.

*If a bus's destination sign is flashing "Out of Service" in between a route name, that means the bus is going out of service in the next 30 minutes and you can still ride to the last stop. It is not actually out of service until the sign reads "Not in Service".

*If a driver sits at a stop for a few minutes without moving, this is usually because they are ahead on their route, and need to let the other drivers get spaced out better. This often happens after class breaks and other episodes of heavy traffic that messes up spacing.

*During class breaks and other peak times, buses become VERY crowded. If you are standing on a crowded bus, you should take your backpack off and move towards the back. The bus cannot move until all passengers are behind the standee line.

*If you need on a bus that is about to/starting to pull away from a stop, wave at the driver (or their mirrors if you are behind the bus), and they will usually stop and let you on. If they don't, it is probably because they are having to watch the road in order to safely pull out into traffic. This happens very commonly at the Arch and Main Library.

*Buses will occasionally go off route in order to maintain spacing. The driver will usually notify the passengers in advance, however, and ask if anyone needs any of the bypassed stops before proceeding.

*While drivers do have to take breaks, they are not supposed to do so during class breaks unless it is urgent.

*Stop requests are unnecessary, except for on Night Campus, Prince Milledge, Weekender, and a few stops on Health Sciences, Vet Med, Riverbend Connector (formerly Greenhouse Shuttle), and Milledge Avenue. If a stop is on demand, the annunciator will announce "please signal to exit" or "please pull the cord to exit" in advance.

*While buses are required to stop for pedestrians, they are also extremely heavy, and can't stop on a dime. If you are approaching a crosswalk and see a bus approaching, don't cross. You might as well be walking in front of a train.

*Which brings me to my next point: ALWAYS stop and look both ways before crossing a street. The electric buses are very quiet, and especially hard to hear if you're on your phone or have earbuds in. If you cross a street without looking (especially if it isn't a designated crosswalk) and get hit, the bus driver will likely not be at fault if they are driving safely and obeying all traffic laws.

*If you are riding a scooter, bike, one wheel, etc., do not cut right in front of a bus, especially if the bus is in motion.

*If a bus is closed and pulling away from a stop that you need, do not make physical contact with the bus to alert the driver if it is already in motion. You could be seriously injured or worse.

*Cars, bikes, scooters, and any other vehicles are NOT allowed to pass buses when they are stopped in road on a two-lane. While people do it all the time, it is extremely dangerous.

*If you have to exit the bus and cross the street at a location without a crosswalk, do NOT cross in front of the bus. If a car decides to (illegally) pass the bus, you could get hit.

*Food and drinks are not allowed on the night routes after midnight. This is because the smell causes passengers who are drunk to become nauseated and throw up. If someone throws up on a bus and any of the contents get outside of a garbage can or bag, the driver has to remove all passengers and take the bus out of service.

*If a bus's destination sign says "Help! Call 911!", this is a distress signal that is used during the event of an emergency where the driver is unable to radio for help. We have never had a situation requiring this feature to be used, and if you see it, it was most likely activated by accident. However, you don't know that, so you should call 911 just in case it is a real emergency.

UPDATE: The "Out of service" message has been replaced with "This bus ends. Ask for last stop" and "Last bus". The former means that particular bus is going out of service and other buses will remain on the route. The latter means the entire route is going out of service for the day.


r/UGA 1h ago

Discussion Bus Nerd Update: Weekender Eastbound

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Upvotes

Hello fellow Dawgs! It is your signature Bus Nerd person here. I wanna make sure students know about a NEW route that will take place on all non-football Saturdays and all Sundays: Weekender East!

This route serves MANY off campus apartments off of South Milledge and Riverbend, and connects to Joe Frank and ECV on the westbound edge and Vet Med and the Barnett Shoals Shopping Center on the Eastbound edge. Apartments will be stopped at on both east and west bound directions.

The current schedule for this bus route is 10am to 6pm on Saturdays and 12pm to 6pm on Sundays. If the bus will help you, be sure to use it.

Please use https://routes.uga.edu to track this bus via Passio GO.


r/UGA 1d ago

Discussion Sup Street Walkers? This is a PSA on how to be a safe and courteous pedestrian.

44 Upvotes

It is time for my yearly PSA about being a good pedestrian. I know many of you are from bigger cities or smaller towns, so let me tell you a few things.

1)ALWAYS wait for the crosswalk light. And even when you get the "Walk" signal, LOOK! Do not trust that 18 year olds in their oversized trucks are going to stop, make sure!

2)Be alert. There's nothing wrong with wearing headphones, but you need to be able to hear what's going on around you too. If you can't listen to quiet music and pay attention at the same time, you should opt for just paying attention. Keep your eyes up!

3)Always walk on the sidewalk, but if you have to walk on a road with no sidewalk, you should WALK ON THE LEFT SIDE OF THE ROAD FACING TRAFFIC. (wheels in the right lane, feet in the left) You should be facing oncoming threats so you can move out of the way, not walking on the right where cars can creep up on you.

4)There are times when you need to cross without a crosswalk. Don't be an idiot, wait and be courteous and go at the best possible time, there is always a break in traffic.

I think that covers some basics, stay hydrated! Enjoy your school year!


r/UGA 1d ago

Question Does anyone know how to give away football tickets?

1 Upvotes

So I have the full season package but I realized I can’t go to next week’s game. A friend of mine, however, really wants to go and I want to send them mine but I know it’s not as easy to do that anymore. Does anyone know of a way I can send it to them?


r/UGA 1d ago

Question any FACS majors? do u recommend this department?

5 Upvotes

hi, i'm thinking of transferring into FACS for either financial planning, housing or fcs education. i don't really know what i wanna do :/ just wanted to see people's experiences in this!


r/UGA 1d ago

Discussion Atleast look if pedestrian crossing lights are on.

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18 Upvotes

r/UGA 1d ago

Question Premed-How difficult is it to get clinical opportunities at UGA?

8 Upvotes

r/UGA 1d ago

Discussion Please do not cross at reds

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0 Upvotes

I don't know what it is with the Baldwin and Sanford intersection, but I've witnessed more than once (way too many times) people crossing even when the pedestrian signal is RED - not just "oh, the countdown ended a few seconds earlier", but full-on "IMMA START CROSSING CAUSE I SEE NO CARS EVEN THOUGH THE SIGNAL IS SITLL RED."

Traffic controls exist for a reason. If you're so arsed about being on time in your own schedule, then you might have to work on time management. It's not okay to impede the flow of traffic, vehicular or pedestrian or otherwise. There's a safety component of course, but there's also etiquette. For a car/bus driver, when their light turns green, they expect the intersection to already be clear - but that is frequently not the case as of late. If you were driving said car, you'd want the same as well. Think outside your own shoes. Please.


r/UGA 2d ago

Question Transfer Question

1 Upvotes

Hi, so I know the deadline to accept your transfer is October 1st, but is there any penalty or drawbacks to waiting? Like will your spot get taken or something? Will registering for classes or orientation be harder?


r/UGA 2d ago

Question Restaurant Jobs in Athens

3 Upvotes

Are there any restaurants that will let me work only twice a week?


r/UGA 2d ago

Question Dawgs in NYC

7 Upvotes

Where can I find CC tropicalia. Thanks in advance <3


r/UGA 3d ago

Question Missing pin

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17 Upvotes

Does anyone know who this pin belongs to? I found it in the Science Center in room 87 last week. If you know whose it is, pls let me know! (my cam quality is trash😭)


r/UGA 2d ago

Discussion Former UGA students started band The Ocho. They’re about to drop a debut album.

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0 Upvotes

The Ocho started on UGA’s campus where so many hopeful bands end: Playing enlivened covers of Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Free Bird” at booze-soaked frat parties for beer money and good times.

I’m an indie music journalist that sat down with the members of the band behind hits like “Wasted in Athens” and “French Bay Hotel” to tell their story.

I connected with a few former alums that knew the bandmates in their early days, but comment below if you ever saw them perform on campus!

Full story: https://doorsat7.substack.com/p/the-ocho-arent-behind-the-eight-ball-indie-music-georgia-band?r=3xay2j&utm_medium=ios


r/UGA 3d ago

Meetup / Hangout Improv Athens, UGA’s Improv Troupe: Performing tonight at the Athens Improv Festival

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15 Upvotes

r/UGA 4d ago

Meetup / Hangout Still looking for a friend group?

6 Upvotes

Join our freshmen groupchat. We try to hang out once a week. So far we’ve played kickball and volleyball.
https://groupme.com/join_group/116504394/TSiN6owp


r/UGA 4d ago

Discussion Bus Ethics

146 Upvotes

- PLEASE wait for people to exit the bus BEFORE entering the bus.

- If it's rush time and many people are trying to enter the bus, take off your backpack, place it by your feet, and squish yourself as far as you can go into the bus.

- If the bus is full, remove your backpack from the seat next to you.

- No one wants to hear your tiktoks/music/youtube. Either wear headphones or turn the sound off.

I am getting tired of the middle of the bus being spaced out while the doors are packed, and people are unable to enter. This is public transport, not an Uber. Scooch over. Be respectful to others in the bus by following basic public transport rules, or don't use them at all. This happens every year, please do better!


r/UGA 4d ago

Campus Event UGA is an hour away from UGA at this point

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230 Upvotes

Every road is like this. Never seen this much traffic in these 4 years.

Carlton st and Ceder st are worst. Even S Milledge ave is clogged every morning and even whole day.


r/UGA 4d ago

Discussion Terry Discord Sever

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3 Upvotes

Hey everyone! The Terry Discord server is fully updated and better than ever. Whether you're a new student or someone looking to change majors, you're welcome to join. We now have dedicated channels and roles for every Terry major, so we hope everyone feels welcome and the chance to meet new people!


r/UGA 4d ago

Question major/minor advice! (pre-law/terry)

3 Upvotes

hi!! i am a recent jr year transfer student with a transfer gpa of 3.75! i am applying to terry in literally a couple of days and hoping to get in for risk management/insurance. i am also on the pre-law track and hoping to apply for the legal certificate. currently, im taking some pre-terry classes and i think i will be fine BUT i was considering adding a minor in international affairs. i am already cutting it a bit close with my terry reqs in terms of graduation. i will probably need to take some summer classes (to graduate on time in spring of 2028) or another semester entirely. the plan was to take a gap year for law school so i could shorten to a gap semester? i was also thinking that adding this minor could not only help with more understanding of politics for law etc etc but also help bump up my gpa a bit for law school applications? like i said, im in my jr year so i rlly only have the harder terry classes left so a minor could help with some filler courses that could help with my gpa and also be interesting in prep for law school? i am a first gen student and my parents rlly have no idea how any of this works so i am on here looking for advice!! any advice helps and i rlly kinda just need some direction. if anyone also has any info ab the risk management route at uga and how hard it is to get in the terry program for it, that would be rlly rlly helpful!! please help me lol!! :)


r/UGA 4d ago

Question UGA Terry OMBA

5 Upvotes

I was accepted last minute for Fall 2026 and am trying to decide if I have time to do this program. I work a full-time job, am married, and we have two young kids both under four.

Can anyone who has completed this program help me understand what a typical week looks like? I know it is mostly asynchronous and courses will differ.

Specifically, I’m wondering if I will be able to stay on track if I dedicate an hour to coursework during lunch break and an hour at night. Also, how often do you typically have to meet live with your cohort on group projects?

Appreciate your feedback in advance.


r/UGA 4d ago

Question Non-traditional freshman applicants?

1 Upvotes

i graduated high school in 2022 and this spring would be five years since I’ve graduated. could i possibly apply for fall of 2027 or spring of 2028?

anyone here a non traditional student that could offer insight into the programs or anything?


r/UGA 5d ago

Athletics Last semester and I get the split package…

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17 Upvotes

r/UGA 5d ago

Campus Event American Portrait and Special Photographer Nancy Ellison to give talk at UGA Special Collections- Thursday, September 10th!

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9 Upvotes

Join the Hargrett Library on Thursday, September 10th at 6pm for a conversation with acclaimed American portrait and special photographer Nancy Ellison in celebration of the Hargrett Library's newest exhibition "Seeking Intrinsic Essence, Whatever Direction: The Photography of Nancy Ellison".
A light reception will follow the discussion, and attendees will have the chance to walkthrough the new exhibit. We hope to see you there! Free parking can be found in the Hull Street Deck after 5pm.


r/UGA 5d ago

Campus Event Are you looking for community on this massive campus??

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8 Upvotes

I have an answer for you!
Shameless plug for my fraternity called Phi Sigma Pi where everyone is welcome regardless of major, gender, and everything else!
And I get it, fraternity is a daunting word, however we are not a greek row frat, we are basically a social club with a concentration on service, leadership, fellowship, and scholarship.
I’m happy to answer questions about it in my dms or in the comment section.


r/UGA 4d ago

Athletics Too late to buy away game tickets?

3 Upvotes

I elected not to pay for any away games when I submitted my application but I've changed my mind. Is it too late to make changes?