Governor Touts Numbers for UConn Transit Route

HARTFORD, CT) – Gov. Dannel P. Malloy on Monday announced that the state’s recently expanded CTtransit bus route designed to provide University of Connecticut students, faculty, and staff the ability to connect – for the first time ever – to the main UConn campus in Storrs, the downtown Hartford UConn campus, and UConn Health in Farmington via public transit is experiencing a surge in ridership, with more than 32,000 passenger trips since its launch on Aug. 13.

This summer, Governor Malloy announced the creation of the expanded bus route – the 913 Hartford-Buckland-Storrs Express bus – under the premise that improving connections between campuses within the state’s flagship university, in addition to other destinations in Central Connecticut, is a "smart investment" in the state’s economy.

“To bolster our future and create a robust economy, we must invest in our transportation infrastructure and our higher education system,” Malloy said. “The collaboration between UConn and the Department of Transportation on this route is noteworthy as it provides students and faculty a much-needed public transportation link between the Storrs campus, the Hartford campus, and the UConn Health Center in Farmington.”

During the month of October, the service averaged 439 weekday trips, 324 trips on Saturdays, and 228 trips on Sundays, state officials said.

More than half of passengers on the route took advantage of the state’s new U-Pass CT program – a service between the Connecticut Department of Transportation, UConn, and the Connecticut State Colleges and Universities system that launched during the fall 2017 semester. It give students the ability to have unlimited use of all buses and trains within the state and the costs of the U-Pass CT program are included in university fees.

Malloy said the route provides the ability to connect to other destinations in Central Connecticut, including the upcoming Hartford Line rail commuter system that will launch in mid-2018 and provide service between New Haven, Hartford, and Springfield with connections to Bradley International Airport.

“This route is a very important connection for students, faculty, and residents,” said Lt. Governor Nancy Wyman, who lived in Tolland near the UConn route. “We make significant investments in higher education, as a result, UConn and our state colleges and universities are extraordinary resources. Making them accessible just makes good sense.”

“We are thrilled with the success that we have seen since the launch of this service,” CTDOT Commissioner James Redeker said. “We can also attribute some of the success of the service to the launch of the U-Pass CT program, which makes it easy for students at participating schools to take advantage of our public transportation resources within Connecticut.”

“As you can tell from the ridership numbers, this was a service that members of the UConn community had wanted for a long time,” UConn President Susan Herbst said. “A reliable, efficient means of public transportation between our state capital and Storrs is a tremendous amenity, and there has never been a better time for it. With the opening of our downtown Hartford campus this semester, this new route plays a vital role in the academic and social lives of UConn students, faculty, and staff. This service is going to benefit UConn and the region for many years to come.”

The 913 Hartford-Buckland-Storrs Express bus runs hourly and includes the following stops:

• Nash-Zimmer Transportation Center, Storrs Center (Connections to UConn Transportation for travel around campus and for connections to Willimantic)
• UConn campus Whitney Hall
• Route 195 at Route 44 (Four Corners)
• Tolland park and ride lot
• Buckland Hills Mall
• Manchester - Buckland park and ride (Bus Stops A & B)
• Downtown Hartford at Central Row (a short walk to UConn Hartford campus and connections to other local and express bus services)
• Union Station, Hartford
• CTfastrak Sigourney Street station (transfer available via CTfastrak Route 121 to UConn Health in Farmington)

Patch File Photo