In response to concerns about the recent bus route changes, April Burke, Communication and Engagement Strategist, sat down with Your Newsroom’s Khloe Peacock earlier this week to provide additional comments. This comes nearly a week after George-Anne’s previous publication on the changes. To view the full video, click here or on the image above.
At the time of publication, our staff has not had the chance to speak further with the Student Government Association (SGA), but there is an interview scheduled. We will continue to provide updates as needed.
Below, you’ll find the topics discussed, followed by a brief explanation and quotes from Burke.
Cambridge Residents Raise Concerns Over Stop Relocation
A lot of complaints from residents center around the fact that they now have to walk further to the bus stop, rather than it being right in front of them. Burke replies to these concerns by saying,
“I know that students who live at Cambridge are upset about it. But it’s really about a five-minute walk. I’ve made that walk. Sorry that they’re upset, but I think that’s all the information there is. That it was moved for safety reasons. ”
Safety Concerns: High Traffic on Lanier Drive
During the initial investigation, George-Anne found that “safety concerns” were the main reason for relocation. According to Burke, “Having a stop in a very busy, high traffic area like that, that’s not on university property, we aren’t able to do as much there, so we aren’t able to patrol there as much,” she said. “The Knight Drive traffic is substantially less, so that’s not a hard observation to make, that there’s a lot less traffic in that area.”
How Did the Conversation Start Between Parking & Transportation and SGA?
While there was some confusion about who made the final decision to move the stop, Burke confirmed that yes, it was a collaboration, but Georgia Southern made the decision in the end.
“It’s a routine thing that we review our services with SGA,” she explained. “There were some concerns about safety, I wasn’t involved in that conversation, but I know that it did happen. SGA provides us feedback and information about what students want, but ultimately, the university makes decisions about the bus routes and transportation.”
Why is the New Route Different Than What SGA Approved?
The George-Anne obtained SGA’s meeting minutes from April 2025, which can be found in our previous report. They stated that the Cambridge stop would still be on the route, so what changed? According to Burke, one of the proposed routes had the bus stop in the Southern Courtyard parking lot. SGA went for a ridealong on the new route when there were no students parking there. Burke explains the issues they found by saying, “When First Transit, which is our third-party transportation partner, when they came to actually start running the routes, they found that they couldn’t make those turns.”
Bringing the Bus Stop Back on Campus
Cambridge at Southern is considered off-campus. So, when the conversation came up about moving the stop in the campus perimeter, SGA’s feedback played a big role.
“So there’s always been a desire to bring it back on campus and SGA was there to help say “Well, hey, maybe this would be a better spot.” You know, they’re trying to advocate for students and make sure they still have a close bus stop. But that ultimately that is [Georgia Southern]’s decision.”
