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Shuttle-UM
A Shuttle-UM 40 ft. Gillig Low Floor Bus
ParentUniversity of Maryland, College Park (UMD)
University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB)
Founded1972
HeadquartersBldg #202 Regents Drive Garage
LocaleCollege Park, Maryland
Baltimore, Maryland
Service areaSurrounding areas of UMD's and UMB's campus
Service typeBus service
Demand responsive transport
Routes26
HubsAdele H. Stamp Student Union (UMD)
Regents Drive Parking Garage (UMD)
Pearl Street Garage (UMB)
StationsCollege Park-University of Maryland Metro Station
Greenbelt Metro Station
Prince George's Plaza
Silver Spring Metro Station
Fleet60+
Annual ridership3 million
Fuel typeUltra-low-sulfur diesel
Diesel-electric
OperatorDepartment of Transportation Services (UMD)
Chief executiveDavid Allen
WebsiteShuttle-UM
UM Shuttle

Shuttle-UM is a transit system for the University of Maryland, College Park (UMD), which constitutes the UM acronym of the company, that operates as a unit of the university's Department of Transportation Services. The system is student-ran and is supported by student fees and the university's Student Affairs department.[1] Its fleet consists of over 60 vehicles and transports approximately over three million riders a year.[1] The system provides four different services: commuter, evening, charter, and demand response.[2] The latter consists of a paratransit service and a call response curb-to-curb service during the evening, while the former consists of a bus service that runs for 24 hours, seven days a week. Implied by its name, the bus service route's "shuttle" passengers to and from the university with over 20 different routes. Paid upon admission by students to the university, the services are complimentary and only certain services require university identification badges. In 2012, the company expanded to provide service to the University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) campus under the name, UM Shuttle. Additionally, a new facility was built to house Shuttle-UM's operations and fleet within the campus after over 30 years of being housed off campus.

History

1970s–2000s

Shuttle-UM was established in 1972 by the University of Maryland, College Park's (UMD) Black Student Union as an initiative to promote security for students walking through campus during the evening hours. The operations were run in the basement of a residence hall on campus and consisted of running over two vans on two routes that circled the campus. During the fall of 1978, Shuttle-UM's first facility was built on an off-campus parking lot on Greenhouse Road adjacent to Baltimore Avenue.[3] Upon 1979, the project expanded to a transit system consisting of 10 routes with over 20 vehicles.[4] Up until the 1980s, the entire organization was student run; however, a full-time staff person was hired as the first general manager to oversee operations and provide students guidance.[1]

The Greenhouse facility was further expanded in 1985 and to allocate growing departments within Shuttle-UM, administrative offices were added in 1992, and expanded in 1998. Additionally in the latter year, the company's 12,000 gallon underground diesel storage tank was replaced.[3] Ridership had also grown to 1.1 million passengers and employed 125 student employees that took the positions of "drivers, dispatchers, maintenance assistance, trainers, and managers.[4] Within 1999 and 2001, the facility's maintenance bays were expanded to improve fleet maintenance and the administrative offices underwent a further expansion in 2001.[3]

2010s–

For several years, the annual ridership remained above 2 million; however, during the 2011-12 academic year, DOTS started an initiative that would reward their three millionth rider with free books for a school year, which ultimately commenced in their first year with 3 millions riders.[5] In 2012, the construction of a brand new facility was completed on Paint Branch Parkway within campus adjacent to the Comcast Center. This new facility fit into DOTS' mission and goal to be more sustainable.

A Shuttle-UM 35 ft. Gillig Low Floor bus

The facility included geo-thermal heating and cooling systems, a green roof, and an in-ground filtration system to separate run-off diesel and storm water in the fueling area. The new facility was able to house all administration that was expanded within the years at the Greenhouse facility and featured an above-ground diesel tank that stored 2,000 gallons more.[3]

Shuttle-UM saw its first expansion with the introduction of its UM Shuttle service for the University of Maryland, Baltimore campus which strictly serves the surrounding Baltimore areas near campus. President Jay Perman reached an agreement with UMD to answer requests of the UMB community to obtain a shuttle service within campus. In August 2012, UM Shuttle officially launched and began to transport staff, faculty, and other members of the UMB community with three distinct routes. The vehicles for these routes are operated in Baltimore but housed in the Paint Branch facility and driven by UMD employees. Like Shuttle-UM, university ID's grant access to riding the shuttles for UMB.[6]

Fares

Shuttle-UM and UM Shuttler are complimentary services via paid student fees and UMD's Student Affairs' funds. Additionally, living complexes and businesses pay the organization to run the service in their area, which allow riders to ride by just showing drivers a university ID, not limited to University of Maryland System schools.[7] Residents of College Park were granted access to Shuttle-UM's services via a program approved by city council in 2010, which granted residents passes to show drivers.[8][9] In September 2012, the city of Greenbelt passed a similar program to that of College Park allowing passes for its residents to use Shuttle-UM's services.[10]

Routes

A 40 ft. Flxible Metro bus in service at Regents Drive Parking Garage

Beginning with simply two routes in 1972, the company has expanded its bus service by currently having 26 routes (23 that serve UMD, 3 that serve UMB). Since its existence, the company has added and dropped several of its routes. These known documented instances are noted below. At the conclusion of the 2008-2009 academic year, Shuttle-UM ceased the operation of its 101 Route One Corridor service due to low ridership. This route once had the highest ridership of all routes in operation, but at the current time only averaged over 100 passengers a day. Certain stops that the community rallied to be serviced were added onto the 110 Seven Springs Apartments route to compensate.[11][12] At the conclusion of the 2007-2008 academic year, the 102 Campus Connector North and 103 Campus Connector South were discontinued in favor of the 125 Campus Circulator. The campus "connector" routes were the only routes that ran through campus before the start of the evening routes. For undisclosed reasons, the routes were merged into one route that saw the continuation of service through the same areas and regions of campus that were originally serviced.[13][14]

At the conclusion of the 2011-12 academic year, the city of Greenbelt saw a reduction in service by Shuttle-UM. The 101 Beltway Plaza serviced the Beltway Plaza shopping mall by providing students a shopping outlet on the weekends. The route was last serviced during 2011-2012 and quietly terminated at the start of 2012-13.[2][7]

A Shuttle-UM bus stop located on the UMD campus

Additionally, the 131 Mazza Grandmarc/Enclave Franklin Park no longer ran to the Franklin Park complex in Greenbelt after 2011-12.[2][7] The creation of the 130 Greenbelt and expanded service to the 129 Franklin Park at Greenbelt Station for the 2011-12 academic year saw the merger of the 106 Greenbelt North and 119 Greenbelt South routes, which last ran at the conclusion of 2010-11.[2][4] Additional routes that saw changes included the 123 M-Square which was cancelled between 2010–11 and 2012–13, which saw its services expanded onto the 109 River Road; the 108 Powder Mill Village received a name change and service change to 108 Adelphi by not servicing the apartment complex any further.[2][4]

At the conclusion of 2011-12, the 113 University Town Center and 113 University Town Center (Saturday) lost ridership and lost its University Town Center Towers complex funding sponsor. As a result, the route was to be terminated. However, negotiations between student groups and DOTS resulted in the route being kept for one more year (2012–13) under the name 113 Hyattsville which extended the service to the Hyattsville residential neighborhoods.[15] The 2012-13 year saw the cancellation of the company's "park and ride" services: 101 Burtonsville Park and Ride, 107 Laurel Park and Ride, and 120 Bowie Park and Ride. As Shuttle-UM's first aim to promote sustainability by providing service to regions further than the surrounding campus, the routes servicing Burtonsville, Bowie, and Laurel saw a decline in ridership. Riders protested its cancellation; however, on October 12, the routes were serviced for the final time while DOTS provided alternatives for the riders in reaching campus. Additionally to the decline in riders, the 124 The Universities at Shady Grove route required more buses and funds to maintain, thus the park and rides fate was determined by a budget cut necessary to maintain the 124.[16]

With the expansion of Shuttle-UM into Baltimore at the UMB campus, three routes began to service the area in 2012-13 with 701 BioPark, 702 Mount Vernon, and 703 Federal Hill servicing the immediate UMB campus seven days a week.[17]

Current

There are currently 26 routes (23 serviced at UMD, 3 serviced at UMB) that operate on a combined 24-hour service, excluding UMB. The UMD routes begin and terminate on campus either through its three main hubs: of the Adele H. Stamp Student Union ("slip" and "HH" lots) and Regents Drive Parking Garage. The 109 River Road is the only one to begin elsewhere, that being at the College Park - University of Maryland Metro Station. The UMB routes begin and terminate on campus through the Pearl Street Garage. As the name of the organization implies, the bus service acts as a "shuttle" to and from campus that make a loop to service the immediate areas.

Route Name ID
Requirement 		Service type Terminal Primary
Destination(s) 		Notes
104 College Park Metro No Commuter/Weekend Adele H. Stamp Student Union College Park-University of Maryland Metro Station This is one of the two routes that run on Saturdays and the only route that runs on Sundays during the daytime.
105 Courtyards Express No Commuter Regents Drive Parking Garage The Courtyards at UMD apartment complex
108 Adelphi Yes Commuter Regents Drive Parking Garage Presidential Towers Condominiums (Adelphi)
Chateau Apartments (Silver Spring)
University of Maryland Observatory
109 River Road No Commuter College Park-University of Maryland Metro Station M-Square Research Park
110 Seven Springs Apartments Yes Commuter Regents Drive Parking Garage Seven Springs Village Apartments
111 Silver Spring Yes Commuter Regents Drive Parking Garage Silver Spring Metro Station
113 Hyattsville Yes Commuter Regents Drive Parking Garage The Mall at Prince George's
Prince George's Plaza Metro Station
Prince George's Community College 		This route replaced the 113 University Town Center, no longer stopping in front of the University Town Center Towers apartment complex
114 University View Yes Commuter Adele H. Stamp Student Union (HH) University View Apartments
115 Orange No Evening Adele H. Stamp Student Union (Slip) Elkton Hall (north campus)
Regents Parking Garage
Montgomery Hall (south campus transfer) 		This is of the only three routes that run through the dormitory halls in north campus; gives access to Montgomery Hall in south campus for transfers to other evening routes.
116 Purple No Evening Adele H. Stamp Student Union (Slip) Comcast Center
The Courtyards at UMD
Elkton Hall
Montgomery Hall 		This is of the only three routes that run through the dormitory halls in north campus; gives access to Montgomery Hall in south campus for transfers to other evening routes; replaces the 105 Courtyards Express after 5:30pm
117 Blue No Evening Adele H. Stamp Student Union (HH) Montgomery Hall
University Club Apartments
University View (apartments)
The Varsity (apartments) 		Replaces the 114 University View and 132 The Varsity after 5:30pm
118 Gold No Evening Adele H. Stamp Student Union (Slip) Graduate Hill Apartments
The Commons (apartment complex)
Comcast Center
Regents Parking Garage
122 Green No Evening Adele H. Stamp Student Union Fraternity Row
Leonard Town (apartment complex)
The Knox Towers (apartment complex)
The Commons 		This is the only route that serves within Fraternity Row and fraternity houses
124 The Universities at Shady Grove Yes Commuter Adele H. Stamp Student Union (Slip) Universities at Shady Grove
125 Campus Circulator No Commuter Adele H. Stamp Student Union (Slip) Denton Hall (north campus, next to Elkton Hall)
Comcast Center
Regents Drive Parking Garage
University Club
The Commons 		Implied by its name, this route circles the campus north to south
126 New Carrolton Yes Commuter Regents Drive Parking Garage New Carrollton Metro Station
127 Mazza Grandmarc Yes Commuter Adele H. Stamp Student Union (HH) Mazza Grandmarc (apartment complex)
128 The Encalve Yes Commuter Adele H. Stamp Student Union (Slip) The Enclave (apartment complex)
129 Franklin Park at Greenbelt Station No Commuter Regents Drive Parking Garage Franklin Park (apartment complex)
Berwyn Heights (apartment complex)
Greenbelt Metro Station
130 Greenbelt Yes Commuter Regents Drive Parking Garage Beltway Plaza Mall
Glen Oaks (apartment complex)
Greenbelt Road
NASA Goddard
131 The Enclave/Mazza Grandmarc Yes Evening Adele H. Stamp Student Union (HH) The Enclave
Mazza Grandmarc
132 The Varsity Yes Evening Adele H. Stamp Student Union (HH) The Varsity
133 The Mall at Prince George's Yes Weekend Adele H. Stamp Student Union (Slip) The Mall at Prince George's
Prince George's Plaza Metro Station 		This is one of two routes that runs on Saturdays during the daytime and is only serviced on Saturdays.
701 BioPark Yes Commuter/Weekend Pearl Street Garage UMB Transit Center
UMD Bio Park 		This route is one of the three UM Shuttle routes at UMB
702 Mount Vernon Yes Commuter/Weekend Pearl Street Garage UMB Student Center
UMB Transit Center 		This route is one of the three UM Shuttle routes at UMB
703 Federal Hill Yes Commuter/Weekend Pearl Street Garage Camden Street
UMB Transit Center 		This route is one of the three UM Shuttle routes at UMB

Former

There are 11 documented routes that have been cancelled, altered, or renamed.

Route Name ID
Requirement 		Service type Terminal Primary
Destination(s) 		Notes
100 Burtonsville Park and Ride Yes Commuter Regents Drive Parking Garage Burtonsville Park and Ride Service terminated on October 12, 2012 due to funding and ridership.
101 Beltway Plaza Yes Weekend Adele H. Stamp Student Union (Slip) Beltway Plaza This route was terminated at the start of the 2012-13 academic year and was serviced only on the weekends. ( Shuttle-UM: 101 Beltway Plaza )
102 Campus Connector North No Commuter Regents Drive Parking Garage North Campus Service discontinued upon formation of the 125 Circulator that saw the route merged with the 103 Campus Connector South[13]
103 Campus Connector South No Commuter Adele H. Stamp Student Union South Campus Service discontinued upon formation of the 125 Circulator that saw the route merged with the 102 Campus Connector North[14]
106 Greenbelt North Yes Commuter N/A Greenbelt Road
Old Greenbelt 		Route merged with 119 Greenbelt South to form 130 Greenbelt and 129 Franklin Park at Greenbelt Station
107 Laurel Park and Ride Yes Commuter Regents Drive Parking Garage Laurel Park and Ride Service terminated on October 12, 2012 due to funding and ridership.
108 Power Mill Complex Yes Commuter N/A Powder Mill Village Apartments Route replaced with 108 Adelphi
113 University Town Center Yes Commuter Adele H. Stamp Student Union (Slip) The Mall at Prince George's
Prince George's Plaza Metro Station
Prince George's Community College 		This route was named after the University Town Center Towers apartment complex which the route stopped in front of; route replaced by 113 Hyattsville
113 University Town Center (Saturday) Yes Weekend Adele H. Stamp Student Union (Slip) The Mall at Prince George's
Prince George's Plaza Metro Station
Prince George's Community College 		This route was named after the University Town Center Towers apartment complex which the route stopped in front of; serviced only on Saturdays; route replaced by 113 Hyattsville
119 Greenbelt South Yes Commuter N/A Berwyn Heights
Greenbelt Road
Glen Oaks 		Route merged with 119 Greenbelt South to form 130 Greenbelt and subsequent 129 Franklin Park at Greenbelt Station
120 Bowie Park and Ride Yes Commuter Regents Drive Parking Garage Bowie Park and Ride Service terminated on October 12, 2012 due to funding and ridership.
121 Route One Corridor Yes Commuter N/A N/A Service terminated in the Summer of 2009; replaced with expansion to #110 Seven Springs Apartments route
123 M-Square Yes Commuter N/A M-Square Research Park Merged with #109 River Road route

Seasonal routes

Scheduled bus service is also available for academic semester breaks from Stamp Student Union to areas outside of Maryland.

Transportation to Metropark in New Jersey allows access to Amtrak and New Jersey Transit routes. Bus service to the Port Authority Bus Terminal provides indirect access to JFK, LaGuardia and other transit options in New York City.

Shuttle-UM also has seasonal routes to the Cherry Hill Mall in Cherry Hill, NJ and Philadelphia.

Fleet

Shuttle-UM owns over 60 vehicles used to fulfill its service. They range from a variety of builders, models, length, and engine transmission. The company numbers its series according to the year the vehicle was registered to begin service. For example, vehicle 4291 is a 1990 Flxible Flxible Metro bus, but was not placed in service until 1991. Thus, the 91 is added to the final two digits of Shuttle-UM's series numbering. The vehicles are also grouped in several categories: FLX (Flxible Metro), PHG (Gillig Phantom), LFG (Gillig Low Floor), FFG (40 feet (12 m) Gillig Low Floor Bus), FTL (Freightliner Champion Defender), Vans (Ford E-450, Ford E-350, Dodge Sprinter, Chevrolet Express), and Motor Coach (Setra S417).

Category Year Builder Model Picture Length Engine Transmission # Series
FLX 1990 Flxible Corporation Metro 40 feet (12 m) Diesel 6891
FLX 1990 Flxible Corporation Metro 30 feet (9.1 m) Diesel 4291, 4591
PHG 2001 Gillig Corporation Phantom 35 feet (11 m) Diesel 7001-7701
Vans 2002 Ford Motor Company Ford Bus E-450 23 feet (7.0 m) Diesel 5102, 5402-5602
Vans 2002 Ford Motor Company Ford Bus E-450 25 feet (7.6 m) Diesel 5202-5302
Vans 2003 Ford Motor Company Ford Bus E-350 22 feet (6.7 m) Diesel 2003-2303, 2503
LFG 2005 Gillig Corporation Low Floor 35 feet (11 m) Diesel 8005-8705
LFG 2006 Gillig Corporation Low Floor 35 feet (11 m) Diesel 9006-9706
Vans 2008 Dodge Sprinter 23 feet (7.0 m) Diesel 5008, 5708-5908
Vans 2009 Ford Motor Company Ford Bus E-450 25 feet (7.6 m) Diesel 2609-2709
Vans 2010 Ford Motor Company Ford Bus E-450 25 feet (7.6 m) Diesel 2810
FFG 2010 Gillig Corporation Low Floor 40 feet (12 m) Hybrid electric 3010-3310
FFG 2010 Gillig Corporation Low Floor 40 feet (12 m) Ultra-low-sulfur diesel 3410-3710
Motor Coach 2011 Setra S417 45 feet (14 m) Ultra-low-sulfur diesel 111-511
FTL 2011 Freightliner Trucks Champion Defender 32 feet (9.8 m) Ultra-low-sulfur diesel 6111-6411
Vans 2012 Chevrolet Express 3500 14 feet (4.3 m) Diesel 2912
FTL 2013 Freightliner Trucks Champion Defender 32 feet (9.8 m) Ultra-low-sulfur diesel 6513-6813

References

General

  • Shuttle Driver Handbook, 2012-13. College Park, Maryland: University of Maryland, College Park. 2012. pp. 1–77.
  • Shuttle-UM Fleet List for Dispatch, University of Maryland, College Park, 2012 {{citation}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Unknown parameter |lauthor= ignored (help)

Specific

  1. ^ a b c Handbook 2012-13, p. 2
  2. ^ a b c d e "Campus Connections" (PDF). Department of Transportation Services at University of Maryland. Retrieved 2012-10-14.
  3. ^ a b c d Handbook 2012-13, p. 75
  4. ^ a b c d "Shuttle-UM Regulations (2010)". Department of Transportation Services at University of Maryland. 2010. Retrieved 2012-10-13. Cite error: The named reference "Shuttleregulations10" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  5. ^ "Freshmen is DOTS 3 millionth rider , wins year's worth of textbooks". Campus Drive blog. 2012-04-26. Retrieved 2012-10-14.
  6. ^ Fishel, Ed (2012-09-13). "Bus Gratis: UM Shuttle arrives". The Voice. {{cite web}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Missing or empty |url= (help)
  7. ^ a b c "Use of Shuttle-UM by Greenbelt Residents". Greenbelt, Maryland City Council. 2011-08-11. Retrieved 2012-10-14.
  8. ^ McCarty, Alicia (2010-09-29). "Divided city council passes Shuttle-UM program extension". The Diamondback. College Park, Md. Retrieved 2010-11-12.
  9. ^ Schuman, Jonah (2008-08-14). "Shuttle service to open in September". The Gazette. College Park, Md. Retrieved 2010-11-12.
  10. ^ Henneberg, Bailey (2012-09-11). "Shuttle-UM kicks off in Greenbelt". Greenbelt Patch. Retrieved 2012-10-14.
  11. ^ "Shuttle-UM loses Route 1 service but doubles resident ridership". The Gazette. 2009-07-23. Retrieved 2014-10-14.
  12. ^ McGonigle, Kate (2009-07-15). "Bus route changes to make up for lost line". The Diamonback. Retrieved 2014-10-14.
  13. ^ a b Department of Transportation Service at the University of Maryland (2006-08-30). "102 Campus Connector North" (PDF). R.H. Smith School Business at the University of Maryland. Retrieved 2013-01-02.
  14. ^ a b Department of Transportation Service at the University of Maryland (2006-08-30). "102 Campus Connector South" (PDF). R.H. Smith School Business at the University of Maryland. Retrieved 2013-01-02.
  15. ^ "UMD students still have Hyattsville shuttle". The Diamondback. 2012-08-16. Retrieved 2012-10-16.
  16. ^ "Service ending October 12th, 2012" (PDF). Department of Transportation Services (UMD). Retrieved 2012-10-16.
  17. ^ "UM Shuttle". University of Maryland, Baltimore. Retrieved 2012-10-16.
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