San Jose State has launched a new transportation service for students through the ride-hail company Lyft, offering students an alternative to pre-existing shuttle and escort services.
The new SJSU Lyft Evening Ride program is a partnership between Associated Students (A.S.) Transportation Solutions, UPD Parking Services and Lyft and also offers three free rides up to $10 every month.
Tiffany Rodriguez, Transportation Services program manager, said she’s grateful for the partnership.
Rodriguez said in an email that the ride program is a better adoption for people who require more travel accommodations, specifically with “the flexibility of the Lyft ride for travel distances, tracking option, shorter wait times and extended service hours.”
She said there are some restrictions, however.
The services are available for use from Mondays through Fridays from 7 a.m. to 2 a.m. and the rides must either start or end within the border area of SJSU’s main campus.
Students are also expected to cover the price difference for any trips that exceed the $10 limit.
The SJSU Lyft Evening Ride program is now one of three transportation services.
The other two services are the Safety Escort and the Safe Ride, which was originally called the Spartan Shuttle. Both programs provide police escorts between campus and students’ living accommodations.
The Safety Escort is specifically focused on escorting students to their on-campus dorms and is available 24/7, according to its website.
The Safe Ride program provides off-campus transportation within a mile radius, and is available during the Spring and Fall Semesters on Mondays-Fridays, from 7:30 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. It’s designed to safely escort students from their late-night classes and/or events, according to the SJSU Safe Ride webpage.
Students can also request an escort by utilizing any Bluelight Phone or elevator phone on campus, or by calling the UPD at 408-924-2000, according to the University Police Bluelight Phone webpage.
There are about 22 Bluelight Phones on campus, according to the Bluelight Phone map.
Political science junior Georgina Jimenez expressed that she is relieved there are newer implementations and accommodations.
“I discovered the shuttle services just last semester. I quickly found out that finding parking around this time was impossible. So instead, I would Uber to school and my mother would pick me up after,” Jimenez said.
She said the SJSU Lyft Evening Ride program and other ride-escort services have improved her commuting experiences.
UPD Capt. Frank Belcastro said he would advise students who are walking home at night to implement the “buddy system,” which is walking in groups or pairs, remaining alert to your surroundings and avoiding shifting your focus elsewhere, especially to phones.
“If you see behavior that is suspicious such as someone trying door handles, acting in a manner that is dangerous to themselves or others, violent or harassing actions, or other out-of-the-ordinary behavior, call UPD, ” Belcastro said in an email.
Eligible students for the SJSU Lyft Evening Ride program should have already received an email with information about the program but interested students can reach out to the A.S. Transportation Solutions in the Student Union.
“SJSU is an urban campus in the heart of downtown, and UPD works hard to protect our campus community. The more programs and services we have to do that, the better,” Rodriguez said.
