As many of my SMU peers believe, riding the Dallas Area Rapid Transit, or DART, is impractical seeing how most students either have cars on campus, or have friends with whom they can a hitch ride.
However, I believe that riding the DART could be considered a learning experience for every student. It forces them to interact with the world outside SMU’s campus and see what Dallas has to offer if you venture off Mockingbird. Not to mention it helps keep Dallas “green,” and save you a lot of money on gas.
Last semester I had to ride the DART and interview strangers for my journalism class. The thought of getting on a public bus alone scared me out of my mind. I had never gone near a DART bus before, and having a car on campus that could take me anywhere. However, my DART experience ended up being very beneficial.
As I stepped outside of the Highland Park bubble that I had become too accustomed to, having spent everyday of the school year absorbed in this little universe, I realized that life really does exist outside SMU, and there is a real world. The people who I interviewed were friendly and eager to have their voices heard. Granted, not all of them represented the typical SMU student, but they were normal human beings, just like you and me. They were people with careers and time commitments, making the best of what they have in life- the people you will soon be encountering once you have a career of your own.
With the gas prices continuously soaring, there is no question why the number of DART riders has increased. According to the Dallas Morning News, nearly 70,500 people rode the DART trains during weekdays in July, an increase of nearly 14 percent over the same month last year, and overall rider ship on the DART buses jumped more than eight percent since last year. The DART travels around Dallas and 12 surrounding cities, covering a total of 700 square miles of land. Should you wish to venture outside SMU’s campus, the DART buses can take you to Addison, Carrolton, Cockrell Hill, Farmers Branch, downtown Dallas, Garland, Glenn Heights, Irving, Richardson, Rowlett, Plano, University Park and back to campus in Highland Park.
I encourage you to become a contributor to the DART rider population and ride the DART at least once in your SMU career. After you graduate SMU you will no longer be living in this bubble. You will be forced to live in the real world, a world with careers and schedules and decisions to be made. So why not get a little taste of what’s to come in your future? When you do, you’ll soon be very thankful that you’re in college and you’ve still got some time to worry about a career, but you will have at least seen what’s in store for you ahead and maybe saved a little money to spend at North Park.
Allison Cooley is a sophomore accounting major. She can be reached for comment at [email protected].
