LAFAYETTE, Ind. (Lafayette Online) — CityBus is inviting Lafayette and West Lafayette drivers to “Dump the Pump” and ride the bus instead. To kick off its campaign highlighting the financial and environmental benefits of public transportation, CityBus invites everyone to ride free all day on all routes on Thursday, June 19.

Lafayette Mayor Tony Roswarski and West Lafayette Mayor John Dennis have proclaimed June 19 “Dump the Pump” Day in the two cities.

“We’re citing the high price of gas as just one reason to consider CityBus for regular commutes,” said General Manager Martin Sennett. “There are many more benefits — less traffic congestion, better air quality because greenhouse gases are reduced, and the convenience of having someone else drive. Using public transportation is an easy and significant way to reduce fuel consumption, save on spending and help the environment.”

“By experiencing the ease of riding, we believe many commuters will realize what a benefit public transportation is to our community and world and make the decision to become everyday riders,” said John Metzinger, manager of development.

“Dump the Pump” is a nationwide campaign coordinated by the American Public Transportation Association. Many cities across the U.S. are participating by offering free rides.

CityBus operates a fleet of 73, including four hybrid busses. It logged nearly 4.7 million passenger trips in 2007, including more than 340,000 on the free downtown/Purdue trolley. Its mission is to be a proactive community partner, striving to improve the community’s quality of life by operating safe, reliable and environmentally friendly transit services, by partnering in local economic development activities, and by providing excellent customer service and efficient, convenient access to destinations throughout Lafayette and West Lafayette, Indiana.

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Purdue University Police are investigating a break-in that occurred Wednesday morning at 130 Russell St., West Lafayette

A male resident of the house told police he was awakened by the handle to his room door being jiggled, said interim Police Chief John Cox. The resident got up to see who was at the door and reportedly saw a white male walking down the hallway trying to open doors to other rooms.

The suspect reportedly saw the resident and fled from the house to the parking lot where he got into a white late 1990s model mid-size pickup truck with a black stripe or design on the side and drove away.

The suspect was described as 30 to 40 years of age, about 6′ 3″ to 6′4″ tall, with a shaved head. The resident also stated the suspect had a muscular build and was wearing a blue sweatshirt.

“Even though school is not in session, residents are reminded to keep their doors and belongings secured,” Cox said. “Incidents like this occur year round in and around campus. Students, staff and visitors are reminded to continue to stay vigilant and report all crimes and suspicious behavior to the police department.”

Anyone with information on this incident, is asked to contact the Purdue University Police Department at 765-494-8221.

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (Lafayette Online) — The Purdue Police Department reminds faculty and staff to be cautious and obey all stop signs and traffic control devices on the West Lafayette campus, particularly along Harrison Street between South Russell Drive and South Martin Jischke Drive.

Due to construction in the area, traffic has been realigned and lanes have been narrowed along Harrison Street.

The Police Department has noticed an increase in the number of vehicles ignoring the stop signs and traffic control devices in that area, increasing the chances for a serious accident. To help with safety, the police will be aggressively patrolling the area throughout the coming weeks.

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Abandoned and damaged bicycles on the West Lafayette academic campus (not residence halls or Purdue Village) will be removed during the next week in a partnership between the Grounds Department and Purdue Police.

Student patrol officers will begin marking bicycles this week and the bikes will be removed by grounds personnel next week (May 5-9).

Removed bicycles will be held for 90 days and a master list of all bicycles removed will be maintained by the police department. After the 90-day holding period, abandoned bicycles will be made available for sale using established University procedures.

Gary Evans, director of grounds, encourages students to take care of their bicycles before the semester ends.

“Our mission is to maintain the visible excellence of our campus, and abandoned bikes detract from that image,” Evans said. “We also want to provide fair warning to students that we are conducting a campus-wide sweep, and to let them know they should contact the police department at 49-48221 if they think their bicycle was secured as a damaged or abandoned bike.”

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Purdue University police have released composite images of two suspects being sought in connection with the attempted theft of two laptop computers from a room in Meredith Residence Hall on Friday (April 11).

 

According to police, a student walked into her room on the second floor shortly before 3 p.m. to find two men there. One of them was carrying a dark-colored duffle bag, Purdue police Lt. Fred Davis said. She confronted the men and pulled the two laptops from the bag.

The men immediately ran from the room and were seen leaving Meredith Hall on foot, Davis said.

Both men were described as being college-aged. One was about 6 feet to 6 feet 2 inches tall, with shoulder-length braided hair. He was wearing a black hooded sweatshirt, baggy jeans and was carrying the duffle bag. The other man was described as approximately 5 feet 6 inches tall, with a heavy build. He was dressed in all black and was wearing a black baseball cap.

“It’s important for residents to remember to lock their rooms when they are leaving – no matter for how long,” Davis said. “A locked door protects your personal property and provides the added security of knowing that you will be returning to a room that doesn’t have unwanted visitors inside.”

Anyone with information is asked to contact the Purdue Police Department at (765) 494-8221 or call the department’s anonymous tip line at (765) 496-3784.

Purdue’s Keaton Grant, left, shoots over Iowa’s Seth Gorney in the first half (AP Photo)

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (AP) — Keaton Grant made the winning free throw with 1.4 seconds left and Purdue held off Iowa 51-50 on Wednesday night.

Purdue got the ball with five seconds left and the score tied at 50. Grant took the inbounds pass and drove the length of the floor before he was fouled by Iowa’s Tony Freeman. Grant made the first free throw, then intentionally missed the second because Iowa was out of timeouts. Purdue secured the rebound and ran out the clock.

E’Twaun Moore led Purdue with 12 points and Scott Martin added 11 for the Boilermakers (16-5, 7-1 Big Ten). Purdue, which has won six straight, is off to its best start since the 1997-98 season.

Justin Johnson led Iowa with 14 points, and Freeman added 13 for the Hawkeyes (10-12, 3-6).

Purdue shot just 41 percent, but made up for it by forcing 22 turnovers.

Iowa could have evened the season series with a win. The Hawkeyes got the ball trailing 50-47 in the final seconds. Iowa’s Jake Kelly drove to the hoop for a layup, and Purdue’s Robbie Hummel was called for basket interference, making the basket good. Martin fouled Kelly on the play, and Kelly made the free throw to tie the game at 50 with five seconds left.

Iowa led 29-27 early in the second half before Martin made a 3-pointer to give Purdue the lead. Moore made a 3-pointer, then Moore’s steal led to a dunk by Chris Kramer that pushed Purdue’s lead to 35-29.

Minutes later, Martin made another 3-pointer to give the Boilermakers a 38-31 lead.

Johnson made two 3-pointers to help the Hawkeyes cut Purdue’s lead to 42-39. The Hawkeyes trimmed Purdue’s advantage to 44-43 on a dunk by Kurt Looby, and the game was close the rest of the way.