Mustang Express is exception to the rule

Philip Lesjak is used to riding public transportation. Growingup in the heart of Berlin, Germany one becomes quicklyindoctrinated with the stereotypical (and usually true according toPhilip) aspects of public transit.

Stale air waiting to be breathed, a foul stench wafting throughthe transport vehicle, and lots of tired, unfriendly folks on theirway to work or home in their own little world, oblivious to thefeelings of the men and women with which he or she is so closelysurrounded.

Philip said that nearly all of his encounters with publictransportation unfortunately share a quality with his past loverelationships…they all stink. Of course, like most of ourlove lives, there is one exception, one bright spot in his gloomyresume of public transport experiences. Philip has found theMustang Express.

Shuttling students, teachers, workers, and shoppers every Mondaythrough Friday back and forth from the SMU campus to stops atMockingbird Station and Lovers Lane, the Mustang Express provides aclean, timely, and (best of all) free resource to all kinds ofDallasites.

With the recent extension of the DART rail system over the pastfew years, students as far removed from SMU as Plano or Garland canbenefit from the Mustang Express. This is a welcome sight forstudents looking to save money by living at home, but who haveresisted the possibility due to heavy traffic heading inward to SMUand rising gasoline costs.

The signature red buses of the Mustang Express run every 20minutes between the hours of 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., then every 40minutes until 10 p.m. when the last bus calls it a night.

There are several Express stops located on campus including twoon the Boulevard (one in front of Cox Business School and the otheracross the greenway in front of the Meadows School of Artsbuilding), a third by the Cinco Center, a stop across from thefootball stadium and a new stop in front of the Laura Lee Blantonbuilding.

But it’s not the newly furnished, air-conditioned buses orthe punctuality of the bus drivers that have won over thepessimists of public transportation such as Lesjak. In fact, thesetwo accommodations above are simply minor players in what makes upthe excellence of the Mustang Express shuttle service.

According to students, faculty, staff and drivers, the truegreatness of the “Red Fleet” lies in the relaxed,comfortable, and friendly atmosphere enjoyed by what seemed to bealmost all patrons aboard. Bus drivers conversed with teachersabout the weather, while a pair of commuter students struck up aconversation about the Major League baseball playoffs, at the sametime as a former marine named Cliff Solomon discussed the politicsof our two presidential candidates with a worker from Subway. Whosays public transportation has to be a miserable experience?

Many passengers say it is a real delight to see so many peoplefrom so many different backgrounds, origins, and age groups socomfortable with each other. Denise Braxton, one of the manyenergetic bus drivers employed by Mustang Express, explained thatmost of the people ride the bus at the same time, same day, everyweek.

She actually sees friendships develop between riders who sharethe bus at the same times. Denise also informed me that the MustangExpress is a great way for students who live on campus to travelover to Mockingbird Station to shop, as well as an easy ride forstudents living near Mockingbird Station or Lovers Lane to get tothe gym on campus for an evening workout.

So next time you need to get somewhere around SMU, look for thered bus coming and hop on. And when you board, let your collardown, relax, enjoy a comfortable seat, strike up a conversationwith a stranger, but don’t forget to say hi to Denise as youboard, she takes offense to that. Ahhh, if only relationships couldbe this easy…