Columbia Deploys New Commuter Shuttle Service for Affiliates Returning to Campus this Fall
Columbia University announced in advance of the Fall 2020 term that a new fleet of Commuter Shuttles would be implemented to help the community commute to and from campus, as an option additional to public transit and the Intercampus Shuttles. The buses service four boroughs and run throughout the day in an effort to service the majority of Columbia's faculty, staff and students.
In advance of the Fall 2020 semester, Columbia Transportation and University partners contracted Academy Bus and Betterez – a company specializing in online ticketing and reservation software – to implement a ticketed shuttle service for Columbia affiliates returning to campus as an option in addition to public transit.
The Commuter Shuttle service for faculty, staff and students runs every weekday from four outer boroughs and Manhattan to the Morningside, Manhattanville, and Medical Center campuses. Passengers conveniently reserve seats in advance through Betterez’s online ticketing system, which also helps to ensure the bus remains below capacity restrictions and riders can maintain adequate physical distance during the trip.
The project was large in scope and required logistical coordination among multiple Columbia departments – Columbia Transportation, Columbia Print, Environmental Stewardship, Campus Services Information Technology, Facilities and Operations, and Contract Services – and external partners Academy, Betterez, and Passio Go! in order to launch prior to the start of the Fall term.
Buses were on the road less than 30 days after the project began. Behind the scenes, this meant performing multiple test runs to determine viable routes, creating over 180 schedules per day with a combined 84 origins and destinations, and inputting them into Betterez’s ticketing technology to ensure a seamless experience for passengers. Capacity management measures and a contactless boarding procedure were also implemented to facilitate physical distancing on buses and while waiting at stops.
The Commuter Shuttle service received positive early feedback from riders. One passenger wrote in an email to Columbia Transportation, “It was great! The bus was really clean, and they had the seating seat up for physical distancing. I am going to encourage people to take it!”
All buses in the Commuter Shuttle network are coach-style, wheelchair accessible, and include WiFi. Passengers can see exactly where the buses are in real time using the Passio Go! app, available for free download. Tickets are $4.50 each way and can be paid for using any major credit card, including an EBPA card under Columbia's Transit/Parking Reimbursement Program (T/PRP).
These shuttles are just one way Columbia has committed to finding safe, economical and efficient means of transportation for the community to navigate to and from campus during the pandemic.