UCSD announced their next transportation vehicle: The What Hath God Yacht.
Photo by Jack Yang
On Sunday, UCSD Transportation Services announced a new shuttle to compensate for the recent lack of ridership. Over the past eight months, public transit has seen a dramatic decrease, to which Josh Kawasaki, director of transportation, has attributed to UCSD students’ overall decrease in partying, saying, “I recognize that, as UCSD students, you all have to drive long distances to actually be at the cool parties, and because of that, you have to avoid driving under the influence as much as possible. I hope that this new shuttle allows everyone to safely return home after a long night of consuming liquid courage.”
The Party Bus shuttle is planned to have permanent stops at Mandeville, Ralphs, and the Tijuana border, as well as popular apartment complexes in the La Jolla area. Other stops change on a weekly basis, depending on where parties are being hosted, according to Kawasaki. As an alum of SDSU, Kawasaki also stated that he has been able to “pull some strings” and allow UCSD students to attend “the most lit parties” in the area, claiming, “These losers need to have at least a small glimpse of what a real party is, even during a pandemic.”
In addressing concerns regarding partying during a pandemic, Kawasaki referenced UCSD’s “Return To Learn” Program. In order to board the bus, all students must fill out a symptom screener and personally vouch that they are free of any symptoms of COVID-19. According to the university, 79.59% of students who fill out the symptom survey have yet to test positive for COVID-19. UCSD’s groundbreaking research regarding the relationship between the symptom survey and positive COVID-19 test results has led Transportation Services to conclude that it is relatively safe to ride shuttles and continue partying, regardless of the possibility of coming in contact with someone who has contracted the virus at the party itself.
The Party Bus shuttle is set to start running December 11th to kick off finals week. Shuttle service runs Friday- Sunday from 7pm until 4am, although Kawasaki doesn’t recommend boarding “until at least 10pm.” “You don’t wanna be one of the first ones there, especially as a UCSD student. That’s embarrassing.”
UCSD students have had overall positive opinions on the new shuttle. “I’m not the biggest fan of parties, but I’m glad to see that everyone has to do a symptom screener before boarding, that was definitely my biggest concern,” said third-year Kenny White.
First-year Paul Baker concurred, stating, “My parents didn’t let me go to SDSU because they knew it was a party school. I’m glad I finally get to stop focusing on school and live the college life I always wanted, full of underage drinking and the possibility of contracting the coronavirus.”
One SDSU student also commented on the new shuttle after reading about it on Reddit. Second-year Nicole Thomas also responded positively: “Under normal circumstances, I wouldn’t think of inviting any boring students from UCSD to our parties, but lately the parties have been a lot smaller, so the more the better!”
Alongside the announcement of the new Party Bus shuttle, Transportation Services have also announced a new COVID-19 testing shuttle that runs directly to testing sites. Kawasaki has stated that this new shuttle is the result of a new state mandate, and that Transportation Services recommends avoiding this shuttle in order to avoid coming in contact with anyone who could possibly have COVID-19, as the symptom screener is not a requirement to board.
