Press Releases
09/13/2018
Gov. Malloy: UConn Bus Line Exceeds 115,000 Passenger Trips in First Year of Operation
Bus Service Connects UConn’s Storrs Campus, Downtown Hartford Campus, and UConn Health
(HARTFORD, CT) – Governor Dannel P. Malloy today announced that the recently launched bus service that – for the first time ever – provides UConn students, faculty, and staff the ability to connect via public transit to the main UConn campus in Storrs, the downtown Hartford campus, and UConn Health in Farmington, in addition to a variety of other destinations in between, saw 115,493 passenger trips during its first year of operation.
Officially known as the 913 Buckland-Storrs Express, the service began operating on August 13, 2017.
“Building a robust transportation system is critical to building our economy and stimulating growth,” Governor Malloy said. “By connecting campuses within our state’s flagship university to other destinations in Central Connecticut, including the Hartford Line commuter rail system and CTfastrak, which has convenient connections to Bradley International Airport, we are making smart investments in our economy.”
More than half of passengers on the route took advantage of the new U-Pass CT program – an initiative of the Connecticut Department of Transportation, UConn, and the Connecticut State Colleges and Universities (CSCU) that began during the fall 2017 semester through which all students from the participating schools have access to unlimited rides on buses and trains within the state at no charge simply by showing their student ID and a U-Pass. It is funded through their university fees.
“These numbers are especially gratifying and clearly demonstrate that the decision to expand service east of the Connecticut River was a smart one,” CTDOT Commissioner James P. Redeker said. “This service is filling a need that students, faculty, and thousands of ‘regular’ Connecticut citizens had communicated to us. It’s a clear win all the way around.”
“This route and the easy, reliable access is provides to the Storrs campus has been incredibly valuable for our students, employees and many others,” UConn President Susan Herbst said, noting that the record-high ridership figures occurred on the day that UConn’s new freshmen moved to campus. “We felt sure there would be strong ridership based on the feedback we heard from our students, but these numbers exceed our highest expectations. We’re grateful to the state for investing its energy and resources into the route and U-Pass, both of which are clearly filling an important need.”
Other highlights from the month of August include:
- 9,096 passenger trips were recorded on Route 913 in August, with 4,817 of those trips starting/ending in Storrs;
- The fall semester began at UConn on Monday, August 27 and ridership jumped immediately from an average of 285 passengers per weekday to 612 passenger per weekday as a result;
- Route 913 set a new single-day ridership record of 780 passenger trips on Friday, August 31; and
- In the first three weeks of Route 913’s second year of service, ridership in the corridor is up 18.4 percent over year one.
The 913 Buckland-Storrs Express bus, operated by CTtransit, stops at:
- The Storrs Center Nash-Zimmer Transportation Center
- UConn Storrs Campus
- Tolland park and ride lot
- Buckland park and ride lot in Manchester
- Buckland Hills Mall
- UConn Hartford Campus
- Hartford Union Station
- CTfastrak Sigourney Street Station in Hartford
At the CTfastrak Sigourney Street Station, passengers can transfer to CTfastrak Route 121 to the UConn Health facility in Farmington, allowing students and faculty to commute between UConn facilities for work and school.
The 913 Buckland-Storrs Express operates weekdays from 5 a.m. to midnight; 7 a.m. until 1 a.m. on Saturdays; and 7:30 a.m. until 8 p.m. on Sundays.
Additional information about the U-Pass CT program can be found at www.ctrides.com/u-pass.
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