CT Transit-UConn Bus Route Tops 115K Riders in First Year

HARTFORD, CT – Gov. Dannel P. Malloy on Friday announced that bus service to the main University of Connecticut campus in Storrs, the downtown Hartford campus, and UConn Health in Farmington — and stops in between — amassed 115,493 passenger trips during its first year of operation.

Officially known as the 913 Buckland-Storrs Express, the service began operating on Aug. 13, 2017.

“Building a robust transportation system is critical to building our economy and stimulating growth,” 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.”

State officials said more than half the 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 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.”

Added UConn President Susan Herbst, "This route and the easy, reliable access is provides to the Storrs campus has been incredibly valuable for our students, employees and many others. 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 Aug. 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, Aug. 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's Storrs Campus
• The Tolland park-and-ride lot
• The Buckland park-and-ride lot in Manchester
• The Buckland Hills Mall in Manchester
• UConn's Hartford Campus
• Union Station in Hartford
• 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.

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.

Photo Credit: CT.gov

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