Ames Drops Bus Gun Ban After Lawsuit, Campus Carry Fight Remains

A lawsuit threat over a gun-free city bus system just got one Iowa gun owner a policy change, and it's a reminder that local governments can't write their own Second Amendment rules.

Snapshot

Iowa State University student Natalie Gibson and the Iowa Firearms Coalition pushed the city of Ames to drop its ban on carrying firearms aboard CyRide buses. The Ames Transit Board unanimously voted to replace the ban with a warning about possible university and campus-area restrictions instead, as reported by Bearing Arms.

Key points

• The policy: CyRide's revised rules now permit lawful open or concealed carry on buses and bar employees from refusing service, demanding permits, or calling police over a passenger carrying a firearm.
• The warning that remains: Riders are told firearms could still violate Iowa State University policy or state law once they're on campus grounds.
• The legal pressure: Gibson sued after the Iowa Firearms Coalition first flagged the ban as unlawful back in October 2025; her attorney, Alan Ostergren, says the city only acted once the suit was filed.
• Unfinished business: The lawsuit itself isn't over, and Ostergren notes Ames could still be on the hook for attorneys' fees and damages.
• Campus gap: Bearing Arms points out that Iowa State's own campus carry restrictions remain untouched, meaning students like Gibson still can't lawfully carry to and from class even with the bus ban gone.

Quick take

This is a clean example of a local transit agency enforcing a rule it apparently had no legal standing to enforce, and only fixing it once facing a courtroom bill. Gibson's win is real, but it's narrow — the bigger fight over campus carry in Iowa, as Bearing Arms notes, is still unresolved and may stay that way under the current political split in state government.

Read the full story: bearingarms.com