California Lutheran University should adopt a more accessible student transportation program for a safe and reliable way to travel around Thousand Oaks.
When I transferred to Cal Lutheran from the University of Colorado Boulder, I knew there would be some changes when it came to campus environment and size. CU Boulder is a much larger school, with an enrollment of 38,428 compared to Cal Lutheran’s 3,351, so to expect the same experience would be unreasonable.
The one thing I never thought I’d miss, however, is something we see every day and don’t think about—a bus. At CU Boulder, there was the Buff Bus, a student-focused transportation bus that traveled from campus housing to academic buildings, grocery stores and downtown.
“My freshman year when I lived on campus, I’d use it at least once, if not twice, sometimes three times a day,” said Ian Carter, who graduated from CU Boulder in spring 2025. “A bike would be fun, but that’s only if the weather’s permitting, which in Boulder, it snows a lot, especially in the school year. So I definitely would use the Buff Bus a lot of times.”
Although public transit in Thousand Oaks exists, the buses available to the public are limited. If you’ve ever tried to coordinate a schedule for a movie on Friday night or grocery shopping on Sunday, you already know how difficult it is to rely on others, rideshares or just stay on campus.
According to the City of Thousand Oaks, the transit is free for college students and operates from 4:45 a.m. to 8:15 p.m. on weekdays and 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturdays. The transit does not run on Sundays. Route 42, which also travels to The Oaks Mall, Conejo Valley High School, Thousand Oaks High School and Los Robles Hospital, picks up at Mountclef Boulevard and Faculty Street, every hour.
Deanna Broughton, a student worker at the front desk of the Student Union at Cal Lutheran, said a Cal Lutheran shuttle could make life easier for students without cars.
“I feel like that would help, especially during the weekend,” Broughton said. “Bus hours are different and less accessible on the weekend, and they don’t go to all the destinations for students, which is why I think having a Cal Lutheran shuttle, even if it’s just on the weekends, I think that would actually be pretty helpful.”
At CU Boulder, free, convenient public transport improved accessibility throughout the city by providing an equal chance for students to participate in campus and community activities, even if they were not car owners. The shuttle service also created a safer environment on and off campus, especially late at night, as parents could be slightly more at ease with the knowledge that their kid had a reliable option for travel.
“The campus buses were really nice because you knew it was all just students,” Carter said. “Some of these [Regional Transportation District buses], especially in Denver, can get pretty sketchy.”
Of course, Cal Lutheran is not CU Boulder. We don’t have as many students, the resources of a Division I program, or the same budget. While Cal Lutheran may not have the funds for a large-scale program like this, it does not need to, as other Division III schools have created spotlights around their bus systems.
Lafayette College in Pennsylvania, with a student enrollment of 2,729, has its own bus program. They ride a smaller red bus showcasing their university with their name plastered across the sides and front. Now, it appears they are taking the next step by giving out Uber vouchers to students, according to The Lafayette.
A campus shuttle could get students to places they plan on visiting on Sundays or later in the evening, whether that be The Oaks Mall, Janss Marketplace or nearby restaurants. At Cal Lutheran, the absence of a transportation system is felt by students without a car. We may not have CU Boulder’s size or resources, but that does not mean we can’t adopt similar ideas.
