Recently, Ye Jun, dean of the School of Literature of Guangxi University for Nationalities, was hit by a sightseeing car on campus and was seriously injured and died.
What is surprising is that the vehicle involved is a sightseeing car type on-campus commuter vehicle, and the speed is generally 20 kilometers ~ 25 kilometers per hour, which does not seem to be very harmful. In the past decade, the area of colleges and universities has continued to expand, and the total number of students has increased by more than 10 million, which has led to the problem of travel for teachers and students. And for the sake of convenience, sightseeing buses are becoming more and more common on campus.
"When the accident first happened, our school carried out safety education, and it was specially emphasized at the meeting a few days ago." Recently, when Silver Persimmon Finance visited a university campus in Hangzhou, many drivers said that the traffic accident of Guangxi University has become a warning case at the training meeting. During this period, some colleges and universities have taken relevant measures to focus on the safety inspection of campus buses.
This accident not only sounded the alarm for the traffic safety of colleges and universities, but also made people ask: how are college campus buses managed? And how to ensure the safety of teachers and students? Silver Persimmon Finance launched an investigation into this.
The original intention was to serve students
Through online searches, Silver Persimmon Finance found that several colleges and universities in Hangzhou have introduced campus buses. For example, a campus of a university in Hangzhou covers an area of more than 1,000 acres, and the campus bus has both buses and sightseeing buses. On May 15, Silver Persimmon Finance visited the campus and could clearly feel that the operation of the school's campus bus is basically the same as that of the city bus.
Just after entering the school gate and walking for about five minutes, Silver Persimmon Finance arrived at the campus bus stop. According to the campus bus timetable display board, there are three routes in the school area, which run every 15 minutes, 7:00~21:20 every day on weekdays, and there will be more trips during the peak period of evening classes. The campus bus fare of the university is 1 yuan per time, and the payment methods include campus card, WeChat, Alipay, etc., and students can see the real-time location of the bus by scanning the QR code.
In the middle of the road on the campus of the school, there are "30" speed limit signs, "let" and other signs. When taking the sightseeing bus, Silver Persimmon Finance saw that although each seat was equipped with seat belts, students were basically not wearing seat belts, which was mainly due to the short ride time. Drivers are also cautious in driving, not only keeping their speed within the speed limit, but also actively slowing down when they encounter zebra crossings or pedestrians crossing the road.
At the departure station, there are a number of campus buses waiting in line for departure, and the drivers who get off the bus are chatting. "Our school directly manages and manages school buses, and there have been sightseeing buses for at least a decade ago, and the number has been increasing since then." Bus driver Wang Sheng (pseudonym) recalled.
The convenience of this means of transportation is indeed self-evident. Within the campus, there is a distance between the student living area and the functional area. On that day, Silver Persimmon Finance walked from a canteen in the campus to a gate, which took nearly half an hour.
But campus buses aren't the only way to get around campus. The campus does not prohibit teachers and students from riding battery bikes, and there are areas for parking shared bicycles and shared electric vehicles every few hundred meters. Wang Sheng's feeling is that "during the rush hour, there will be more people taking [the campus bus], and there will be fewer people at other times."
Yu Feng (pseudonym), a logistics staff member of a university who was once responsible for the management of the campus fleet, said that in recent years, the area of colleges and universities has been expanding, the scale of students has increased, and the campus bus came into being. According to the National Statistical Bulletin on the Development of Education, the construction area of colleges and universities has increased significantly in the past decade, from 842 million square meters in 2013 to 1.189 billion square meters in 2023.
Sightseeing buses and minibuses are generally used on campus, while large buses are more commonly used for travel between different campuses. If it is only used for on-campus transportation, due to the short distance, low-speed, small and medium-sized electric vehicles are more common choices, and some colleges and universities simply use scenic sightseeing buses and hotel shuttle bus models, which include closed, semi-enclosed and open-top models.
"Like other means of transportation, campus buses give students more options to get around." Yu Feng emphasized that judging from the low ticket price of sightseeing buses, the original intention of the school to introduce this type of car is to serve students, not to make a profit.
In the capacity of research, Silver Persimmon Finance consulted several companies that provide comprehensive service solutions for on-campus bus operation for colleges and universities. Liu Minghui's (pseudonym) company is one of them. "In addition to the expansion of the area, the introduction of campus buses in the school also has traffic control considerations." Liu Minghui has been dealing with colleges and universities all year round, and he has learned that the parking demand generated by students' free purchase of electric bicycles will affect the use of space on the campus itself, coupled with the frequent explosion and fire safety accidents of electric vehicles, which have increased the pressure on the management of colleges and universities.
Shen Qi, another practitioner, added that the growth of private vehicles will increase the burden of vehicle and road management in colleges and universities, and the introduction of on-campus public transportation can alleviate this phenomenon, adding that the mobility of university students is relatively high.
The revenue risk of service projects is not small
The interviewee told Silver Persimmon Finance that there are currently two main business models for campus bus operation, one is to introduce external companies, and the other is to self-operate and manage like a university in Hangzhou.
"Originally, we only had one department responsible for the business of colleges and universities, and after continuous development, we set up an operating company to connect with each other." In the past ten years, Liu Minghui vaguely felt the development potential of the college campus bus operation and management service market.
He mentioned that the main responsibility of colleges and universities is to teach and educate people, and given the restrictions on the purchase of vehicles and the financial investment of projects, they will tend to hand over non-educational business to professional companies. According to its estimates, the introduction of third-party companies to operate campus buses accounts for the main part of the two models, while the proportion of self-operated buses by colleges and universities does not exceed 10%.
Silver Persimmon Finance also found the bidding documents for the campus bus operation service project issued by several colleges and universities. The relevant requirements in the announcement show that the campus bus service project has the characteristics of heavy investment.
For example, according to the "Technical Parameter Requirements" for bidding issued by Guangxi Minmin University in August 2022, according to the number of teachers and students on campus, the supplier Nanning Fufuwan Car Rental Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Nanning Fufuwan Car Rental") must self-raise funds to purchase 7 17-seat pure electric sightseeing cars and put them into operation, and purchase third-party liability insurance of no less than 3 million yuan for each vehicle. The announcement also requires that the 7 campus sightseeing buses put into operation must be new vehicles (unused vehicles), and the configuration standards and performance of each vehicle must meet the factory regulations. During operation, all repairs, maintenance, maintenance, insurance, etc. are also borne by the supplier.
Shen Qi introduced, the campus bus belongs to the customized products, depending on the brand and configuration, the price range is larger, the cost of each 17-seat pure electric sightseeing car is about 50,000 yuan ~ 100,000 yuan, and the price of a better configuration bus is more than one million.
"The procurement investment is only a part, and the supporting facilities such as parking lots and charging stations are also built by the operating company, as well as labor costs such as the hiring and training of driving drivers." Shen Qi estimates that under normal circumstances, the initial investment of operating the company's sightseeing buses will be at least one million yuan, and the buses will be several times larger.
Silver Persimmon Finance noticed that the winning bid amount of the college campus sightseeing bus service ranged from hundreds of thousands of yuan, and some won the bid amount of 0 yuan, and the operating company would be required to pay a performance bond. There are also colleges and universities that charge management fees to operating companies, such as 10,000 yuan/vehicle/year.
Liu Minghui and Shen Qi both said that under this model, the campus bus operating company has great operating pressure in the early stage, and the risk of project revenue is not small.
The layout of the living area and functional area of the university is the key factor that determines the revenue of the campus bus. "The campus bus mainly solves the problem of students commuting to and from class, and the demand is relatively simple, and the group is relatively fixed." Liu Minghui used the situation of a university in charge of his company as an example to illustrate that during the contract period, after several teaching buildings near the dormitory of this university were put into use, it was convenient for students to walk to and from class, and the efficiency of the campus bus was almost halved. There was also campus control during the epidemic, which once made it difficult for the project to generate revenue.
Among them, the factors of policy changes in colleges and universities were also mentioned many times in the exchange. Liu Minghui recalled, "At the beginning, a certain university banned students from riding self-propelled electric vehicles, and there were many people on the bus. After the change of supervisors, electric self-propelled vehicles were allowed, and the number of passengers on campus buses was reduced. ”
Shen Qi added that since female students generally take sightseeing buses on campus more frequently, changes in the gender structure of college students will also affect the business situation.
Like the project obtained by Liu Minghui's company, only 1/3 of the on-campus sightseeing bus project can be profitable, but the pressure on the operation of buses between different campuses is slightly less, the price is higher and the university will issue a certain subsidy, "after recovering the input cost, the later operation will be improved, but it also depends on the specific situation of the university." Shen Qi also emphasized, "This kind of project itself has a certain public service nature, and it will not be a profiteering industry." ”
Safety management is mainly regulated by the operating company itself
According to the bidding announcements of a number of universities, the contract period between universities and operating companies is mostly 3~5 years, during which the operating company is responsible for its own profits and losses. The school is not directly involved in the operation and management of the company, but the interviewee pointed out that the company must operate in accordance with the campus bus routes stipulated by the university, and if there are changes, it needs to be submitted to the relevant departments for approval and approved by the university.
The tender announcement also mentions that the operating company is subject to the supervision and management of the school. However, in the cooperation with many universities, the interviewees clearly perceived that the traffic safety management concepts and management capabilities of different universities are different.
Liu Minghui introduced, "Some schools will take more refined measures to manage, and include student complaints and evaluations in the annual assessment, and the year-end comprehensive score must reach a certain score before it can be renewed." Shen Qi said that there are actually relatively few schools that regularly or irregularly inspect the qualifications of vehicles and drivers.
"The sightseeing car is a vehicle in the field, which can only be driven in a specific area, belongs to special equipment, cannot obtain a license, and the annual inspection is also not mandatory. Buses that need to be on the road like inter-school buses are very clear, they must be licensed and overhauled regularly. Liu Minghui said.
They said that the safety management of college campus buses mainly depends on the operating company itself to standardize. In comparison, sightseeing cars that can only be driven on campus, do not have a license plate, and do not require annual inspection, driving safety depends more on the transportation management and management capabilities of third-party companies. Are on-campus sightseeing buses subject to traffic regulations? What is the maximum speed? Is there any monitoring? How often is the condition of the car checked? Are drivers safety-conscious? These can affect the safety of your operations.
The accident in which the dean of the School of Liberal Arts of Guangxi Minmin University was hit by a campus bus and died of serious injuries is a hidden risk that is usually not taken seriously, and finally caused serious consequences. The campus buses of this university are operated and managed by Nanning Fufuwan Car Rental, and the vehicles invested are sightseeing buses, which students are accustomed to calling sightseeing buses and "baby buses". A student at the school, Amai (pseudonym), recalled to Silver Persimmon Finance that after the sightseeing bus entered the campus in the past two years, a new group of drivers came to the campus, all of whom looked relatively young, and some of the drivers drove faster. "Some people play with their phones while driving, and they don't slow down when they turn corners or get close to crowds." According to Mai's observation, the security guards often do to ease traffic order, but there is no strict control over the speed of vehicles.
In addition, the operation of sightseeing buses is also a little chaotic. Amai said that there is no specific route for sightseeing buses to stop, and drivers usually plan their own routes according to the students' destinations. "There is no vehicle stop on campus, sightseeing buses are on call, and different campuses have a WeChat group, in which students inform the driver of the pick-up point."
It is worth mentioning that in terms of risk liability, the bidding announcements of many colleges and universities and the contracts signed with the operating companies specifically state that the suppliers of the transaction shall bear all the responsibilities for all kinds of safety accidents that occur during the operation and management of campus buses. In Liu Minghui's view, this is also a common practice in the industry.
Chen Wenming, director of Zhejiang Xiaode Law Firm, introduced that the "road" in the Road Traffic Law refers to highways, urban roads and places where social motor vehicles are allowed to pass although they are within the jurisdiction of the unit, including squares, public parking lots and other places used for public traffic. Many colleges and universities have restrictions on vehicle entry and exit, which are strictly outside the "road".
However, this does not affect the determination of liability. "The driver who causes death by driving a vehicle at fault shall bear the corresponding criminal responsibility." Chen Wenming mentioned that the financial compensation can be borne by the operating company.
Li Hongzhi, founding partner and deputy director of Beijing Zeheng Law Firm, added that if the operating company bears "vicarious liability" without fault, it can recover from the driver after taking responsibility.
Does the contract clause that "the supplier shall bear all the responsibility" mean that the accident has nothing to do with the university?
Li Hongzhi believes that as a manager of public places, it depends on whether colleges and universities have fulfilled their safety obligations. The Civil Code points out that if the manager of a public place causes damage to others due to the actions of a third party, the third party shall bear tort liability. If the manager fails to fulfill the obligation of safety assurance, it shall bear the corresponding supplementary responsibility. After the manager assumes supplementary liability, it can also recover from a third party.
"Specifically, whether the vehicle involved in the case has a vehicle operation certificate, whether it is regularly inspected, whether the driver has the relevant qualification certificate, and whether the speed limit measures on campus are in place, etc., are all important bases for judging the fault of the school." Li Hongzhi said.
"Trade profit margins for living space"
"When selecting bidding companies, colleges and universities will list safety as an important standard reference." The interviewed industry personnel all believe that campus bus operating companies must improve their safety and security capabilities if they want to maintain the stability of the business of colleges and universities.
However, no matter what type of vehicle it is, there is a chance that an accident will occur after it is on the road. Shen Qi said that the first thing to do is to control the risks of the vehicle itself, such as speed. Speed limits vary from university to university, with some not exceeding 20 km/h and others not exceeding 30 km/h. "We will tailor the vehicles according to the speed limit requirements of the service universities, and the maximum speed of the campus bus will be designed within the speed limit, and we will also install speed alarms."
In addition, the interviewees emphasized the strict control of drivers. A staff member of a low-speed electric vehicle company introduced to Silver Persimmon Finance that the sightseeing bus type of campus bus has a long body, heavy brakes, and a large turning radius when turning or making a U-turn, and there will be some blind spots, which requires the driver's driving skills to be relatively high.
"Driving a driver is often one of the biggest risk points for a traffic accident." Liu Minghui said that the company will require drivers to obtain driver's licenses for corresponding types of vehicles, especially for sightseeing car drivers must obtain special equipment operation licenses, and strengthen safety education and training for drivers in daily training. In addition, the company has established an internal safety management system, such as purchasing insurance for each vehicle, regular inspection and maintenance of the vehicle, and so on.
The interviewed industry personnel also said that while ensuring safety, it is also necessary to improve the quality of service in daily operations. They believe that by improving route planning and using digital platforms to cultivate students' consumption habits, they can increase the likelihood of turning losses into profits.
"In terms of route arrangement, it is more dependent on the scheduling ability of on-site management personnel in colleges and universities, and some administrators will take the initiative to grasp the direction of students' movements, such as understanding students' physical education classes, job fairs, various examinations and other activities, and further integrate vehicle resources for these needs." Liu Minghui introduced that on the basis of meeting the needs of students for fixed lines, they also provided customized services. "On the digital platform, students can book appointments in advance, and we can see where students are calling for vehicles."
This series of measures will also push up the input costs of operating companies. "These investments are valuable, although they compress our profit margins, but expand the living space." Liu Minghui explained that their customers are universities and the group they serve is students, and in the end, they must be recognized by both parties, which will also improve the company's competitive advantage.
According to the interviewees, in recent years, many new players have tried to participate in the bidding competition of colleges and universities across banks. Through public information, Silver Persimmon Finance also learned that some colleges and universities have developed campus bus operations into public welfare entrepreneurship service projects for college students.
"The competition in this industry is still fierce, and people who don't know how to do it may feel that the project is very profitable, and deliberately report the management fee handed over to the school when bidding." Liu Minghui lamented that some colleges and universities still lack a certain degree of fairness in the bidding process, which provides an opportunity for non-professionals.