UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Penn State Transportation Services is reminding students, faculty and staff at University Park of the campus and community services available to them to get to, from and across campus during the winter months.
Campus and community transit
The CATABUS Blue Loop, White Loop and Red Link, and Penn State’s two Campus Shuttle routes (via College Avenue and via Beaver Avenue), are no-fare transit options for the Penn State community for transportation to locations across campus and downtown State College. With service starting as early as 6:45 a.m. and running until late at night, passengers can escape the cold while getting a convenient ride to their destination.
Red Link service has been increased to have one additional bus along the route. This bus will follow behind the first bus sent out for the day by approximately three to four minutes to help alleviate overcrowding on the Red Link route during peak ridership times.
CATA also offers 17 Community Service routes that serve campus and the surrounding State College and Centre Region area. Many stops are located at popular destinations such as grocery stores, restaurants, shopping centers and apartment complexes. The cost is $2.20 for a one-way trip and riders can purchase bus passes and tokens or use exact change for bus fare.
Riders can download the Penn State Go app for real-time bus and shuttle locations and arrival predictions for each stop to avoid waiting for a bus in the cold.
For more information on campus and community bus service, visit the buses and shuttles and public transportation pages on the Transportation Services website.
RideOn
RideOn is a free ride-matching platform available exclusively to Penn State faculty, staff and students. Users can find ride matches for daily carpooling and one-time trips, such as weekends, holidays or when their regular form of transportation is not available.
Drivers can earn money to cover travel expenses like gas and toll fees by filling extra seats in their vehicles while helping fellow Penn Staters in need of a ride.
The platform aims to encourage more sustainable travel by making it easy to share rides and find transit and biking routes.
CATACOMMUTE and Commute with Enterprise
The CATACOMMUTE program has partnered with Commute with Enterprise to offer vanpool commuting options for those across the Centre Region.
The program connects employees who live near one another and provides them with a van or SUV to serve as their vanpool vehicle. These vanpool groups allow users to save money on vehicle gas and maintenance while also allowing them to relax or catch up on work during their commute.
Winter Biking
The Spin e-bike share program, through partnerships with Transportation Services, the Borough of State College, and Ferguson and Patton townships, offers more than 300 electric-assist bikes as another helpful option for getting around. Bikes are available across campus and in town year-round, and bike racks are close to buildings to provide convenient access to users.
Bicyclists are also encouraged to visit the Bike Den if they need help creating a winter riding plan. Staff and volunteers can provide valuable information on bike repair and maintenance, and bicyclists can get tips on layering clothing, changing the tread on bike tires, visibility and more.
For more information on campus and community biking resources, visit the biking page on Transportation Services' website.
Lyft Programs
The Penn State Ride Smart by Lyft program provides eight $10 per ride credits each month to all Penn State University Park students for Lyft rides back to campus residential areas from downtown State College and select surrounding neighborhoods on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights between 2 a.m. and 7 a.m. when other campus transportation is limited.
The Innovation Park/Medical Center Lyft program is for University Park students and full-time faculty and staff who need rides between campus, Mount Nittany Medical Center and Innovation Park. Those who register for the program will receive 20, $20 Lyft ride credits each month from 6:30 p.m. and 1 a.m., Monday through Friday, and 9 a.m. to 1 a.m. Saturdays and Sundays year-round.
For more information on the Lyft programs, visit Transportation Services' Lyft programs page.
Safe Walk
Students also are encouraged to use the University's Safe Walk service operated by University Police and Public Safety, which provides walking accompaniment on campus for students, employees and visitors who may feel unsafe walking alone on campus at night. This program is available from dusk till dawn, 365 days a year.
To learn more about these campus and community transportation options, visit transportation.psu.edu. For questions, contact Transportation Services at 814-865-1436 or email parking@psu.edu.