It is easy for international students to be under the impression that Florence is similar to cities like New York, Chicago and Los Angeles. Streets full of public transportation such as buses, taxis, and shuttles come to mind when picturing those iconic and busy cities depicted in many popular films, photography and TV.

When it comes to actually getting around in Florence, however, international students have a limited number of options. They must either bring their own cars, borrow or rent cars if they have their international driver’s license, depend on the kindness of friends, call for a taxi or plan their shopping around the UNA shuttle bus schedule.

“(There are) no buses and taxis around here and that sucks,” said Binta Balajo, an international student from Gambia. “I have to rely on my friends and the shuttle bus, which is only available on Saturdays (for shopping).”  

Balajo has had some unpleasant experiences with UNA’s shuttle service.

“There was one time where the UNA bus dropped me and my friends off at the mall at night and never came back,” she said. “We waited two hours for it to come back. We had to eventually call our friends from school to come pick us up.”

The students she called did not have vehicles, so they called campus police. The campus police informed them that the shuttle service was already closed for the night. The police gave the students a local cab service’s phone number.

Some students were under the impression that Florence would have more public transportation and shopping centers near UNA.

“It would have been great if we had many shops, restaurants and malls around us because I’d just walk,” said Charline Ganso, an international student from France. “Now, I don’t have a car and the mall is far, so I have to depend on my friend’s car.”

Some international students obtained their international driver’s license to get around.

“Being an international student is hard because you must have a personal car,” said Sumit Kapoor, an international student from India.

Kapoor received his international driver’s license before coming to the United States and gets around Florence by borrowing his friends’ cars.

“The government of Alabama should provide public transportation for international students,” he said.

UNA’s shuttle service runs Monday through Friday from 6:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. It also runs on Saturdays from 1 p.m. to 10 p.m. The shuttle is free for UNA students. For more information about shuttle services, call 256-765-4357.