Updated 02/20/13 – 10:30 a.m.

CHICAGO (CBS) – A college student from Illinois who left the driving to Greyhound says he never expected the bus company would leave him out in the cold.

WBBM Newsradio’s Regine Schlesinger reports, earlier this month, 18-year-old Ankur Singh rode a bus from Minneapolis back home to downstate Bloomington. There was a five-hour layover scheduled at a Greyhound station in Des Moines.

The only problem was, when the bus pulled in on schedule at 4 in the morning, the station was locked and empty, and was not to due to re-open until 5.

For an hour, he and fellow passengers huddled together outside in a 17-below-zero wind chill. He had on only in a sweatshirt and jacket.

“I wasn’t prepared to wait outside for an hour in negative 17-degree weather, so I just put all my clothes on, and wrapped my face up with a shirt,” he said.

Singh says a fellow passenger turned red and began shaking.

Now, Singh wants to force Greyhound to make sure its stations are open whenever a bus is scheduled to pull in.

He’s drawn nearly 75,000 signatures in an online petition at Change.org, many of those signing telling similar stories of being abandoned outside closed Greyhound stations in the middle of the night.

In an email, Greyhound said the bus was operated by Greyhound partner Jefferson Lines/Burlington Trailways.

“Greyhound has not operated in Des Moines since August 2012, and the location is currently served by an interline carrier who sets the hours at their agencies. The use of an interline carrier is noted when a ticket is purchased, as well as on the ticket. Greyhound terminals and agencies are open when buses are scheduled to arrive or depart,” Greyhound said. “We will work with the interline carriers to help ensure their hours are consistent with the scheduled arrivals and departures. The safety and security of all motor coach passengers is a priority for us and we sincerely apologize for this inconvenience.”