Press release from Citilink:
New campusLink Buses debut
Beginning Thursday, campusLink service will be provided by new, bright green buses. Funding for these buses was obtained through an American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) stimulus grant at 100 percent federal share ($455,000). The three new buses are ElDorado Passports manufactured in California but sold by Midwest Transit in Indianapolis. These new buses run cleaner and are more energy efficient than the older buses that were being temporarily. Exterior graphic design application was provided by Paint the Town Graphics in Fort Wayne.
campusLink provides free shuttle service to students, faculty, and staff in and around the campuses of Ivy Tech Community College-Northeast and IPFW. It is also open to the public. This campus shuttle project is funded as a demonstration as one-of-two elements of a Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ) grant for the first three years of operation – 80% federal and 20% local funding shared by the two schools. campusLink, which began in August, utilizes three light transit vehicles which provides 20 minute service frequency throughout the student residential and commercial areas adjacent to both campuses. campusLink operates Monday through Friday from 7:30 am to 8:30 pm. during the fall and spring semesters.
Since the start of service on the first day of the fall semester (August 24), total ridership to date is 13,047 one-way passenger trips – approximately 200 trips/day on average. Ridership breakout by category is listed to the right.
In addition to the free campusLink shuttle, the CMAQ grant allows Citilink to sell discounted bus passes to encourage ridership on the 12 regular Citilink routes. To date, 967 monthly Citilink bus passes (at an 80% discount) have been sold to IPFW and Ivy Tech students, faculty, and staff. Passes are being sold for $9.00/pass. Citilink is able to bill the CMAQ grant to help subsidize the pass discount.
The hope is that these unique and eye-catching green buses for the free campusLink service – along with discount Citilink bus passes for IPFW and Ivy Tech students, faculty, and staff – will encourage more people to give transit a try. Visit the Web site for more information.
campusLink ridership
by the numbersIvy Tech – 5,853 – 45%
IPFW – 5,266 – 40%
General Public – 1,928 – 15%
Total – 13,047The general public ridership includes passengers who do not have an affiliation with either institution or a trip that does not begin or end at a campus stop.
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