While the frigid D.C. winter makes a trip to Dupont less than appealing, getting off campus just became a little easier. Earlier this week, Georgetown University and Georgetown University Hospital, owned by Medstar, struck a deal which allows University students, faculty and staff to use the hospital-run shuttle buses, in addition to those provided through GUTS, to travel to Dupont Circle or Rosslyn.
This agreement is intended to correct the inefficient parallel systems that had been in affect since last summer, in which MedStar reserved its buses solely for patients and doctors while GUTS buses were restricted to University students, workers and faculty.
The change is a big step towards removing some of the bureaucratic hurdles and logistical hoops that made it more difficult for Georgetown staff to get to and from work and for Georgetown students to get out and experience the city.
When Medstar acquired Georgetown University Hospital in 2000, the University agreed to increase the level of GUTS service in order to offset the effects of reduced parking for University workers. GUTS buses were made available to doctors, patients and hospital staff in addition to University students and employees, and MedStar stopped contributing funds to the GUTS operational budget. On June 16, MedStar inaugurated their own shuttle service to Dupont Circle and Rosslyn, for which access was restricted to hospital workers and patients. Medstar cut its funding of GUTS buses, and there was fear that the University would reduce its shuttle services to pre-2000 levels, due to the budgetary cuts.
The bus sharing agreement implemented on Tuesday was a victory for common sense. Having two entirely separate shuttle services going from the same place to the same places at roughly the same times was an inefficient waste of resources. Not only was it confusing for students, workers and patients alike, but it meant that for each individual wishing to go to Dupont Circle or Rosslyn, there were fewer buses to choose from. By allowing both the University and hospital communities access to both bus systems, everyone is better off.
