A novel alternative to the Street

New York is an incredible city, and it is only about an hour away. But how often do we get to go to New York? Not often at all. There are those sweet deals where the University buys tickets for shows and then sells them to us for very cheap, but that’s about it. And that’s not going to the city. Going to the city is going and getting lost in Manhattan for a couple hours. It’s walking around SoHo and stumbling on some ridiculous boutique where they only stock one of everything and it’s all so outlandish and expensive that you don’t even want to touch anything. It’s walking down the sidewalk and seeing a 20-person line outside a window, then getting in it, only to find you’re waiting for mini-cupcakes that sell for almost $2 each — then buying one and splitting it just to see what all the hype is about. (Not worth it. By the way, what’s with the cupcake craze, anyway? Muffins are clearly better.) That’s going to the city, and going to the city has been tremendously fun, no matter whom I went with or what we did.

I’m from the Bay Area; my city is San Francisco. San Francisco doesn’t even count compared to New York. I find New York fascinating, but I’ve only been three times because getting there is such a time commitment and because paying $22 each time adds up quickly. According to a recent article in The Daily Princetonian, the price of round-trip tickets is set to rise to almost $30.

So, I think the University should start a weekly shuttle service. I think it would be pretty easy to arrange for one bus to drive to the city, drop students off and then bring them back late at night. There could be a sign-up process and a charge that is lower than the NJ Transit train fare. If charging a fare does not defray costs enough to make a New York shuttle affordable, the University should consider eliminating one of the TigerTransit shuttles. I’ve ridden those full-sized buses twice during my entire two years here, and both times the shuttle was completely empty. I think retiring one of these shuttles would not be missed.

I feel that the administration’s hesitation in starting a shuttle service is that either people won’t use it or that too many people will use it and the campus will just go to New York every weekend. I don’t think either of those options is likely at all. I think this would be the perfect alternative to eating clubs. Now, before you get all defensive, I’m not suggesting that eating clubs are bad and that hanging out in New York would be better, more wholesome fun; that’s not what this is about. I just think that having the option of grabbing a shuttle on any given weekend, busing up to New York until one or two in the morning and then coming back would be an excellent alternative to the Street (which, let’s be honest, can be a little monotonous sometimes). I was recently at Columbia, and Columbia students love being in the city. They wouldn’t trade New York for any number of eating clubs. Of course, I didn’t go to Columbia because I wanted more than New York City, but I think from time to time it’s a wonderful change of pace. I just think that there is something about being in a big city with friends and freedom that is immensely enjoyable.

Felipe Winsberg is a sophomore from East Palo Alto, Calif. He can be reached at winsberg@princeton.edu.