NuRide, an organization that promotes "green" transportation, is now collaborating with the University to make carpooling easier for students.
In an effort to broaden the environmental benefits of minimizing daily commute, the University has sponsored the NuRide program for 257 participants in the local Charlottesville and Albemarle County area, including Martha Jefferson Hospital and Charlottesville city employees.
Membership eligibility will be regulated by the University and is limited to users with pre-registered e-mail domains, such as virginia.edu, said Rebecca White, director of the University's Department of Parking and Transportation. The total cost to the University is estimated to be about $16,000, she said.
Users will be able to find carpool companions by signing up through the NuRide website, as well as be able to plan a trip in advance and choose who they want to ride with. If there is a person that the user would not want to ride with, they may place that NuRider on the "Do-Not-Ride" list. This prevents the user from being contacted by the unwanted NuRider.
"We're hoping that people who want to share a ride can find a ride easily," White said. "The ultimate goal is to shift people away from driving alone."
White described the intended use of the program as two-fold.
"For faculty and staff, the target trip is their trip to work," White said, suggesting that University employees could carpool during their daily commutes. "With students, the target trip is visiting another college or going home for the weekend."
White noted the University began accepting proposals from carpool-oriented firms after noticing an increase in interest for carpooling among people affiliated with the University. Three organizations submitted proposals and University Transit Service ultimately selected NuRide.
"We selected the firm that we felt matched our needs the best," White said.
White also acknowledged that NuRide's incentive-based program, which awards users who carpool or use other environmentally friendly means of transportation with points that can be redeemed for coupons, could help reduce overall emissions on Grounds.
"It certainly factors into our every measure of our environmental impact," White said. "Giving people some sort of effective alternative helps reduce that."
NuRide users are not strictly limited to planning carpool rides. The company encourages users to record all "green" trips made, which include telecommute/telework, riding bikes, walking and taking the bus, rail - train, subway, light rail, etc - and ferry rides. NuRide also gives points for "compressed work weeks" for users who have compressed their work weeks into 40 hours during a
Read More
Honor Committee plans Dorm Talks and finals week initiatives
By Lexie Stadler | YesterdayIn an effort to enhance student outreach and introduce incoming students to the Honor System, the Committee will reintroduce Dorm Talks in the Fall 2024 semester.
BREAKING: Two fraternities suspended, one terminated after hazing allegations
By Ford McCracken | 2 days agoThe University’s chapter of Pi Kappa Alpha is the founding chapter of the fraternity, which was founded in West Range room 47 in 1868.
From the archives: April 22 – April 28
By Maisy Callahan and Grace Franklin | 2 days agoThose opposed to the Mall feared closing Main St. would create inconvenience and traffic, which would in turn decrease the income made by merchants.
