This story, from today's Red and Black, the UGA student newspaper, really doesn't require comment, but when have I ever let that stop me?
Campus Transit put the brakes on renting buses to all University of Georgia Greeks after members of one sorority acted in an un-ladylike manner. (Here is a classic understatement if I ever saw one. Read on...)
Alpha Delta Pi chartered nine Campus Transit buses to transport members for the 45-minute ride to and from the sorority's formal in Greensboro on Friday.
The behavior of some of the girls interfered with the drivers, and the buses required "extensive" cleaning afterward, said Ron Hamlin, manager of Campus Transit.
This week, Campus Transit decided to deny bus rentals to sororities and fraternities for the remainder of the semester.
No decisions have been made on what the policy will be next semester.
"We currently are assessing our desire to work for them," Hamlin said.
Alpha Delta Pi had booked another transit company, but it canceled last week, Hamlin said.
"They called us for help, and then it turned into a nasty situation," he said.
Jeremy Skates, a Campus Transit supervisor, drove one of the buses on Friday.
He wrote in an e-mail to The Red & Black that one girl was so drunk on the bus ride to Greensboro she threw up three times. (There may be an upside for her here. If "curling" is an Olympic sport, can "hurling" be far behind? In any event, my congrats to her on what was surely her personal "best"--to date, that is.)
"The 45-minute return trip was even better," Skates wrote. "Girls were urinating in cups and bottles, then throwing them out the bus windows." (Most un-ladylike indeed. Bet they didn't act this way at their freshmen rush parties.)
When groups charter buses, they are charged at a rate of $55 per hour. Buses usually require about 10 to 15 minutes of cleaning after an event, which is charged to the groups at the hourly rate.
However, Alpha Delta Phi was charged extra because it took so long to clean the buses.
"One driver reported spending 45 minutes cleaning, and it still reeks of alcohol," Hamlin said. (I heard the buses also reeked of "tee-tee." Apparently, some of the AdPi's could use a little target practice.)
He did not know the total extra time spent on cleaning the buses.
That bus had to be used Monday for regular transit service because the University does not have many buses to spare, he said. (I knew that smell wasn't coming from my armpits!)
This is not the first time Campus Transit has had problems with the Greek community, he said. (Speaking of understatements...)
Campus Transit enforces additional policies when renting to Greeks. A police officer is required on each bus, (For what? To gawk idly while blotto women shower passing motorists with cups of pee?) and no alcohol is allowed on the bus. (Guess the ADPi's didn't get the memo.)
"Our primary responsibility is to provide a safe service. Not too long ago, there was a situation where a bus took a dive over a bridge in Atlanta," he said. "We don't want that to happen."
Hamlin added it wasn't the whole group that was a problem.
"There were nine buses," he said. "It was only some of the girls on some of the buses that caused problems."
Only individuals affiliated with the University can charter buses. Other student organizations rented buses in the past, but Hamlin said no other groups posed problems like the Greek community.
Efforts to reach _________, president of Alpha Delta Pi, were unsuccessful Tuesday. (Anybody check the buses? I thought I heard snoring beneath the back seat.)
