Increase in ride requests leads to vehicle purchase
URI Parking Services now offers FREE rides for students looking for safe transportation at night. PHOTO CREDIT: James Singer
Following an increased number of safe ride requests on campus, the University of Rhode Island is updating its Safe Ride Service to better accommodate students.
According to an email sent to the community on Nov. 8, Transportation and Parking (TAP) is launching Rhody Safe Rides, a “flexible shuttle service that provides curb-to-curb convenience and safety within the Kingston Campus.”
Available on weekdays from 8 p.m. to midnight and on weekends from 6 p.m. to midnight, campus community members are able to book a safe ride through the TransLoc app or by calling 401-874-SAFE.
According to Michael Jagoda, the director of Public Safety and the chief of the University Police, the concept of safe rides isn’t new to the University, but because of the service gaining more and more users, URI wanted to make it more comprehensive for students.
Previously, students would call the non-emergency campus police number and an officer would escort them to their destination. Jagoda said this system was not convenient for users or the officers, as officers weren’t always available immediately, if at all.
URI saw this not only as a convenience issue but as a safety issue as well, according to Assistant Director of External Relations and Communications Dave Lavallee.
“We enhanced it and now we have a van with a certified driver,” Jagoda said. “That driver will come and pick you up and you can watch where that shuttle is [from the Transloc app], so you can still be safe wherever you are and then come outside when the driver pulls up.”
Jagoda said URI knew it was time to upgrade the system when there were over 100 safe ride requests on average each month.
Not only did this influx have students waiting for a ride for up to 25 minutes, but Jagoda said it was also preventing the on-campus police from performing their duties to their full extent. This not only led to confusion within the public safety office, but it left students waiting for a ride, and it overwhelmed officers when they were trying to provide emergency services.
“I believe it’s not only going to help our officers and our dispatchers perform their duties a lot more effectively and efficiently, but I think it’s just a great opportunity to provide our community members with a quality service that they really demand and need,” Jagoda said.
In addition, Lavallee sees this new system as a more comfortable atmosphere for students. He said that because students don’t have to ride in the back of a police car, and they know that they have a dedicated, new van just for this service, they should feel very comfortable.
According to Lavallee, many students are already familiar with the TransLoc application as it is the same application that the campus shuttles run on. Students using the new safe ride service will have the assurance that the drivers are familiar with the campus, Lavallee said.
In addition, the drivers are able to fit multiple students in the van at once, allowing them to pick up and drop students quicker, according to Jagoda.
These safe rides are available to the entirety of the Kingston Campus and also provide rides to-and-from Kingston Train Station.