OUR VIEW: Follow the rules with turnabout

Over the summer, USU decided to make the drop-off/pick-up situation simpler by providing a double loop to separate shuttle bus operation from the other car traffic in front of the Taggart Student Center.

We like the system – it probably makes a cool design when looked at from the top of the Fieldhouse, and the reds and greens painted on the curbs give the turnabout a Christmasy feel.

Oh, and it is functional and seems to be pretty idiot proof – that’s probably the most important part, actually.

The new system seems to move USU shuttle buses and other cars efficiently through what can be a messy traffic situation. We think the new design provides a safer, more streamlined way of getting students to and from a main hub on campus.

But it’s only safe, functional, streamlined, efficient – and all the other adjectives we’ve used thus far – when people obey the conventions of that system. In plain language: When people stop or park where they are supposed to, instead of throwing a wrench into the machinery, this thing works smoothly.

It can’t be that hard to identify where it is or isn’t OK to stop or park.

1. You can’t park where there’s a red section of curb. That’s pretty basic stuff. You can’t do that anywhere. And if you do park where there’s red, you can expect to get ticketed – nothing different about this system. So red means: Stop and think about it, you can’t park here.

2. Green means you’re good to go. It’s OK to park in the green areas. If you remember from your fifth grade art class, green and red are opposite each other on the color wheel, so when you see green, you do the opposite of what you would do with red. No one remembers the color wheel, so that makes absolutely no sense and probably just confuses everyone. Just remember green = good, red = wrong.

3. Don’t park or stop in front of a shuttle bus. Unless you’re in a tank, the bus is going to win. Shuttle buses eat sub-compacts for an afternoon snack.

With a little bit of cooperation and the observance of the rules, we can all make the TSC turnabout a safe, efficient and pleasant part of the campus driving experience. We hope all of you were picturing a smiling shuttle bus driver waving at a smiling motorist, who is picking up a pair of smiling coeds.

And if the rules aren’t observed, we hope you picture crashes and destruction – or at least some tickets on vehicles. That’s bad enough, right?