While many college students see the end of Friday classes as the beginning of post-paper partying, others see it as the perfect excuse to stay inside and avoid the bitter Western New York wind chill.
According to usclimatedata.com, Buffalo and its surrounding areas have an average high temperature of 32 degrees Fahrenheit and low of 19 degrees Fahrenheit in February. With potentially increased wind speeds, of which the local community saw reach 20 to 30 mph this past weekend, and potentially bitter wind chills, the chance of frostbite in partygoers is a serious threat.
Despite unsafe conditions, Krista Brower, a senior strategic communications and digital media major, said her fast-approaching graduation takes precedence over weather-related concerns when going out.
“Being a senior, I try to at least make it out every weekend regardless of the weather,” Brewer said. “…I usually make sure to have some type of ride to and from the bars. The drunk bus is unpredictable, so having a ride is always reassuring.”
Senior education major Alicia Worthylake said whether or not she goes out depends on the weather conditions. But, she said her ability to go straight to the bars, as she is of the legal drinking age, makes it less dangerous for her to go out.
“When I was a freshman to junior—when I would actually go to house parties—if the weather was below zero, I would not go out unless I had a ride or took a cab,” Worthylake said. “Even now, if the weather is in the negatives I tend to stay in because a night out is not worth frostbite.”
Both Brower and Worthylake agreed Bonaventure should provide more reliable transportation to underclassmen, who don’t always have a set destination or understanding of direction in town. Both added the bus’s delays make students without outside transportation more apt to walk into town in life-risking circumstances.
The late-night Bonaventure bus begins its nightly rounds around 10 p.m. on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, stopping at the Townhouse Apartments, Garden Apartments, Robinson and Falconio Halls and Shay-Loughlin Hall, before heading to its first downtown stop at The Burton Bar. Currently, the bus runs every half an hour until about 2 to 3 a.m.
“I believe that Bona’s can help students by running another bus so that it doesn’t become a mad rush getting to the bus and having to stand outside to catch it,” Worthylake said. “Also, especially at townhouses, sometimes the bus doesn’t stop so we have no choice but to stay outside to catch the bus.”
For Mackenzie Watson, a sophomore strategic communications and digital media major, the possibility of missing the bus often inhibits her plans for the night.
Watson, who is not old enough to enjoy weekend bar-hopping, said she will only make a venture into town given there’s a solidified plan for the night.
“If I have a set plan for where I’m going, like a party or formal, I’ll go out,” Watson said. “If it’s kind of up in the air, I’ll stay in.”
Even if implementing a stricter transportation schedule or adding additional transportation is a lofty feat, students have begun attempting to ease their peers’ transportation stresses.
Peter Bertoldo, a junior French and Spanish double major, said that the Campus Activities Board (CAB) and Student Government Association (SGA) are looking into making catching the bus easier for students.
“If students knew the location of the bus, they wouldn’t have to spend so much time out in the cold waiting,” said Bertoldo, the executive board secretary for CAB. “CAB and SGA are currently developing a way to live-tweet the location of the late bus on the weekends so that no one has to guess when it’s coming. Students could show their support for this plan and urge their representatives to approve it.”
For Worthylake, despite being a second-semester senior, staying warm is her main priority—whether that means dressing for the occasion or taking a night off from the party scene.
“It is possible to look cute and also be dressed for the conditions,” Worthylake said. “Also, keep in mind that a weekend that is going to be in the negatives isn’t the only weekend that you can go out into town. It is okay to stay in and stay warm.”
mcgurllt14@bonaventure.edu
