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Volume 40, Issue 5
October 29, 2002
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Safety concerns force trade-in of 15-seaters
By Justin Buehler
For the Mesa Legend
Alert! Due to rollovers and death, the National Highway Safety Administration
has advised all owners of 15 passenger vans to take extra precautions
while operating these vehicles.
Currently MCC owns five of these vans, but since the recent study by the
administration, the vans have been parked due to safety concerns.
According to Angela Cissell, facilities coordinator at MCC, the vans will
remain parked until safer vans can be acquired.
"I've ordered six 12 passenger vans to replace the five 15,"
she said.
The new vans should arrive in a few months to help compensate for the
loss of the 15 passenger vans.
Until then, other means of transportation are being used for student trips.
"We are renting buses and drivers," Cissell said.
To prevent schedule conflicts between organizations, a priority list has
been distributed to school faculty by Brian Johnson, dean of Students
at MCC.
The list outlines which student groups will get the remaining 12 passenger
vans.
Athletics is first on the list due to agreements that were made before
the loss of the 15-passenger vans.
"They're part of conferences that schedule their games and tournaments,
and meets a year or more in advance," Cissell said. "They can't
pull out or just not show up," she added.
Student activities are next on the list of van eligibility, followed by
student clubs, and finally student field trips.
The remaining order is based on priority and students fees.
On the other hand, students shouldn't see a change in program fees or
have to spend their own money for the vans.
"It's in the students best interest," offered Allen Benedict,
athletic director at MCC.
The money for the new 12-passenger vans is being obtained from the MCC
vehicle budget.
Even after trading in the five 15 passenger vans, valued at $53,500, MCC
will still need $95,878.46 to pay the remaining balance. "We're having
to pay out," Cissell said.
If MCC were to keep the 15-passenger vans, a safety program would have
to be implemented.
There isn't currently a safety program for the 15- or the 12-passenger
vans, but one will soon be in effect for the remaining 12 passenger vans.
Yet, that still undermines the fact that 15 passenger vans are accident-prone
according to Cissell."
"Creating a safety program for the 15 doesn't take away the fact
that there's been quite a number of rollovers throughout the country."
She also added that "Lives are more important than keeping those
vans."
MCC's fleet of five 15-passenger vans have been traded in because of
safety concerns announced by the National Highway Safety Administration.
The college is replacing them with 12-passenger vans.
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