Violet JiraIt’s a new year — and while Oxford hasn’t changed much since students departed for the winter break, the way you get home from a night on the Square has. On Dec. 7, 2021, the Board of Alderman passed an ordinance shifting all taxi and rideshare app traffic to three designated pickup locations skirting the Square.
During the hours of 9 p.m. to 3 a.m., those looking for a ride home and those driving taxis, Ubers, Lyfts and all other vehicles for hire are required to meet at one of these newly designated locations. The goal of the ordinance is to decongest the Square and make finding a ride home as safe as possible for the Oxford community.
The west pickup point is located between Landry’s and Square Books. The north pickup point is near the parking garage, and the east pickup point is on east 14th street, near the intersection with Harrison Avenue. All pickup points will be digitally monitored through video surveillance and physically monitored by the Oxford Police Department.
The possibility of this safe ride home initiative becoming the status quo in Oxford was raised in June 2021 but faced resistance from local taxi companies who feared the initiative would hurt their business and give an unfair advantage to drivers for rideshare apps such as Uber and Lyft.
“This is Oxford, Mississippi. This town is unique. We are one of the few towns in America where people still use taxis. If this comes into play, for our businesses, it’s just a matter of time,” Alfonso Jordan, the owner of Zoe’s taxi, said at a Board of Alderman meeting in June.
Ultimately, efforts to make the initiative law during the summer months failed. However, when students returned for the fall 2021 semester, the initiative was again shoved into the spotlight.
A resolution, co-authored by Associated Student Body Senate Chair of External Affairs Bennett Matson, the committee of external affairs and Sen. Jonathan Amlong, passed unanimously, signifying to local leadership that designated pickup points were something the student body wanted.
“There’s a definite need for it,” Matson told The Daily Mississippian after the resolution’s passage in September.
Matson continued to work closely with the city government until the ordinance was finally approved by the Oxford Board of Aldermen in early December.
“The Executive and Legislative branches of ASB are proud to have worked on this initiative alongside the city government. As for future transit goals, Sen. Matson plans to work on ‘improving Safe Ride and working with OUTbus to look into getting a better busing app and potential late night routes home for students after a night on the Square,’” according to an ASB press release.
Jacob Meyers contributed reporting.
