Transparency Item: The Perspectives section of the Graphic is comprised of articles based on opinion. This is the opinion and perspective of the writer.
If you often walk past the Seaver Main Lot next to Mullin Town Square, you will see a white and blue Pepperdine shuttle parked by a new stop. It runs the new shuttle route which travels between the Pepperdine Malibu and Calabasas campuses, and it is worth a try.
Like many other commuters at Pepperdine, I was always annoyed at driving in circles for parking in the morning. I received citations and had been late for classes. When I finally found a spot far from the teaching building, fully packed shuttles passed by me without pausing a second during rush hour.
As the construction of the Mountain at Mullin Park moved forward, Rho officially closed Jan. 16. Concerned the removal of a major parking lot would lead to a tense competition on other lower campus lots, I decided to seek another way out.
The Office of Public Relations announced the new Calabasas shuttle route for students, faculty and staff in a Dec. 15 email. The shuttle travels between Malibu and the Calabasas graduate campus, a location with ample parking, according to the GSEP website.
The Calabasas campus is located by the Las Virgenes Road exit of the 101 Freeway. It is within a five-minute drive from popular off-campus residence choices including Avalon, Paxton and Malibu Canyon Apartments.
I didn’t pay much attention to the email until I was, again, late on the first day of class trying to park. I happen to pass by the tranquil Calabasas campus on the commute every morning. Luckily enough, the shuttle’s departure time also matches most of my class schedule. As Rho’s closure approached, it became an attractive alternative.
The shuttle route takes approximately 20 minutes, and the service is provided with a maximum capacity of 33 passengers per shuttle, according to the Pepperdine website. It operates six rounds on weekdays between the two campuses throughout the spring and fall semesters.
There is also a financial perk — a reduced gas budget. Junior Jacob Eminger lives in Calabasas and took the shuttle from the second day it became available. “I drive a truck, so it costs me $7-8 a day coming back and forth,” Eminger said. “[The shuttle] just saves me a lot of money.”
Growing up in Shanghai, a Chinese metropolis with a tightly-knit and highly dependable public transportation system, a three-hour public transit route from my apartment in Agoura Hills to school is devastating when it is only a 20-minute drive.
I pushed myself to acquire a driver’s license before moving off-campus in my junior year. But shortly after, I started to miss the view from the passenger’s seat.
I enjoy driving, but it demands my undivided attention. The view from the canyon to the beach is breathtaking for an urban kid, yet concentrating on the mountain road took away half the pleasure.
Now the Calabasas shuttle brings that view to me. The mountain bushes thrive with abundant greenness compared to January of last year. The stunning Malibu Hindu Temple shines between the leaves. Commuting on the same route for over a year, the shuttle elevates Malibu’s beauty to another level.
Yet there are also downsides to the service. The intervals between shuttles from Malibu to Calabasas in the afternoon are approximately two hours. Eminger said the service is perfect except for the number of shuttles leaving from Seaver.
Additionally, the shuttle may not be the best choice if one’s personal schedule conflicts with the shuttle routine. Commuters are responsible for their transportation if they are late or the shuttle is over capacity, according to the Pepperdine website.
Before leaving the house, I consider my schedule for the day and determine transportation carefully. I still drive on my own if there are late classes or appointments around the time for a shuttle return.
Unexpected conditions are more challenging, such as duty calls around the time of the last shuttle. In the best-case scenario, I could negotiate and work from home. Otherwise, due to the uneasiness of Ubering from Pepperdine in the evening, I could only reach out to a roommate or a nearby friend to provide a ride.
There is also potential inconsistency. The Calabasas shuttle is unavailable under certain weather and natural conditions or when Malibu Canyon is closed.
Unpredictable situations involving last-minute staff call-offs caused by personal emergencies or an extraordinary circumstance, such as a COVID-19 outbreak affecting several members, may lead to Calabasas route closure, wrote Camila Bonavia, the associate vice president for Administration and Campus Operations, in a Jan. 30 email to the Graphic.
“But it is highly unlikely as the department does its best to staff accordingly to serve the community’s needs,” Bonavia wrote.
The Shuttle Services and IMC are cooperating to develop a system on the Pepperdine App to notify service closure, Bonavia wrote in a Jan. 19 email to the Graphic. The Calabasas route pickup point would also have signage instructing passengers to drive directly to the Malibu campus if the shuttle is unavailable.
On the way to resolving parking limitations on campus, I look forward to seeing further perfections on this new service to provide the community with travel convenience.
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Contact Laury Li via email: yuting.li2@pepperdine.edu or on Instagram: @laury__li
