In response to Robert Besaw’s opinion printed in Monday’s edition of the Lantern in regards to the COTA bus service, I’d have to say he’s completely right. Why not use our $1.8 million per quarter fee and pave over a nice section of the Oval for a student only parking lot or erect a four-story parking garage? What a genius idea! I mean, it’s not enough that campus crack heads are destroying life on South Campus and that President William “Brit” Kirwan wants to convert us to semesters. That would be destroying something I will go as far as considering an OSU tradition because it sets us apart from other schools.On a serious note though, the deal OSU made with COTA is a very good attempt at bettering student relations with this university and the city of Columbus, something I feel has been going down the drains in recent years. I find it incomprehensible that someone can complain about a minuscule $9 per quarter fee that is peanuts compared to the overall cost of tuition. If you or anyone else is so upset about the quality of COTA then try taking a taxi cab. Not only are they LESS dependable but they’re a hell of a lot more expensive, too.To put all of this in perspective, you never know what you have until it is gone. COTA isn’t the best bussing service I’ve ever experienced in this world but it IS one of the better ones. Besides, you could just take away COTA’s service area from campus and WALK to get where you’re going in -2 degree weather.
Dan HarkerJuniorElectronic and computer engineering