More and more students are taking advantage of the free transportation provided by CyRide’s Moonlight Express, which cruises Ames’ streets on Friday and Saturday nights.

Moonlight Express ridership is up nearly 38 percent for the period of July 1, 1998 to Jan. 31, 1999, said Tom Davenport, CyRide administrative assistant. More than 15,500 people rode the Moonlight Express between July 1, 1998 and Jan. 31, 1999, whereas a year earlier, ridership during that same time frame was only about 11,200.

Davenport said last year’s alcohol-free Veishea had a dramatic effect on the number of riders on the Moonlight Express that weekend.

During Veishea 1997, there were nearly 2,600 riders on the Midnight Express. During last year’s “dry” Veishea, about 1,600 people rode the bus.

“People weren’t going to Campustown because they weren’t going to [off-campus] parties,” he said.

Brent Hofmeyer, Moonlight Express driver, said on an average night, about 400 people use the Moonlight Express service. However, numbers fluctuate.

“One night, we had around 800 people ride,” he said.

Riders of the Moonlight Express aren’t charged a fee; the Ames Transit Agency (ATA), made up of the City of Ames, the Government of the Student Body and the Iowa State administration, pick up the tab.

The money comes partly from student fees and property tax money from the city, Davenport said.

“Before this [fiscal] year, it had been funded by GSB entirely,” he said. Since it has been funded by the ATA, the route has expanded to more remote locations beyond the vicinity of the campus.

Though the Moonlight Express has been dubbed the “drunk bus” by many ISU students, Bob Bourne, CyRide transit director, said the service goes way beyond meeting transportation needs.

He said the purpose of the Moonlight Express is “to get people who are drinking out of their vehicles.”

“Call it whatever you want it, as long as people are not drinking and driving,” Bourne said.

Jacob Varghese, Moonlight Express driver, said some riders under the influence of alcohol get rowdy sometimes.

“Veishea and Homecoming are especially annoying for all drivers because more people are obnoxious during those times,” he said.

Varghese said he gets “really tired of flag downs,” which occur when a potential rider signals for the bus to stop.

“I have actually had people run right in front of my bus to get my attention,” he said.

Janine Wiggins, junior in exercise and sport science, said she thinks the service helps curb alcohol-related accidents.

“I think that it is a good idea,” she said. “It’s free and it keeps people from driving drunk.”

The weekend shuttle has not always been called Moonlight Express, Davenport said.

“It was first introduced to students in 1984 as NightRide,” he said.

Davenport said NightRide originally was funded by ISU students, but in the fall of 1991, the City of Ames and the ISU administration agreed to help share funding.

At one point, funding was so low that NightRide was not able to run for a year. Davenport said the students brought it back in 1993, and it was renamed “Moonlight Express.”