A modified version of last spring semester’s student survey could “start the ball rolling” on whether to begin the Geneva shuttle, said Dave Pack, Chair of the Student Association Mass Transit Board (SAMTB).

The shuttle will bus students from DeKalb to the Geneva Metra train station on weekends, giving NIU students access to Chicago. Transportation to classes from surrounding Geneva suburbs also would be provided.

The idea, which began almost two years ago, is currently in the “design and development stage” and the new survey will “in a large part determine whether we (SAMTB) will implement the project,” Pack said.

The transit board will “research whether the costs would outweigh the benefits,” said SA President Huda Scheidelman. “The project is on their agenda this fall,” she added.

“The respondents from the last survey said many students (40 percent off-campus and 48 percent on-campus) would use the shuttle,” Pack said.

Thirty-six students who took the survey said they “would not use the shuttle, but it was a good idea,” Pack said.

The upcoming survey will be more specific about the times, costs, and departure points of the shuttle and will hopefully accomplish some “fine-tuning of the situation,” Pack said.

The shuttle project, if implemented, will be self-supportive, meaning students can use the bus at minimal costs.

Pack will form a subcommittee to begin the survey project. If the results are optimistic, the shuttle, “an idea that students could utilize,” might be seen by spring, Pack said.

The idea of the shuttle is “worth investigating,” said Scheidelman, who believes the bus would “be a positive addition to the bus system.”