Fordham University’s on-campus shuttle at Rose Hill has been in place for over a decade, but many students say they are unaware that the shuttle exists. University spokespeople said they will focus on “clearly identifying the campus shuttle” as part of the university’s rebranding initiative.
The on-campus shuttle, which runs from 7:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday, transports around 50 Fordham community members across campus per day, according to Deputy University Spokesperson Jane Kidwell Martinez.
First introduced to the Fordham community in 2010, the service is run by Public Safety and is staffed by student workers. Martinez said that the service is a safe way for students, particularly those with mobility issues, to travel across campus.
“It is a safe, convenient way for community members to travel on campus,” Martinez said in an email to The Fordham Ram. “Particularly those with mobility or accessibility issues. Many community members chose to utilize the on-campus shuttle during inclement weather.”
Martinez says that Fordham community members can identify the shuttle as a white Honda or Toyota minivan with a Fordham logo. According to Martinez, there are “designated” shuttle stops at the front of most buildings on campus.
Students can utilize a mobile app called TransLoc to track the shuttle’s exact location, according to Martinez. Mary Byrnes, director for the office of disability services (ODS), told The Fordham Ram in an email that in order to properly use the app, students should be sure to select “Fordham University” when initially logging in. She also said the app only allows its users to view routes when they are in the vicinity of Fordham University.
According to Byrnes, the on-campus shuttle has also been regarded as an important aspect of making Fordham’s campus more accessible for students with disabilities. “An on-campus shuttle is definitely important,” Byrnes said. “There are many people with mobility issues who would benefit from it.”
While Martinez described the service as a safe and convenient way for students to access different parts of Fordham’s campus, Byrnes said that the shuttle can often be unreliable because it is driven by student workers.
“Public safety does and tries its best to have this supplementary service available from 7:30-7:30 pm, but it is driven by student workers, and student workers are not always available, unfortunately,” Byrnes said.
According to Martinez, the shuttle is not wheelchair accessible, despite being utilized by a large number of Fordham community members with mobility disabilities.
Kathryn Cox, FCRH ’27, said she utilized the shuttle service daily after she had a hip operation last spring. Cox found out about the service through her athletic trainer, and said that the service was “so slow, but so helpful” in terms of getting her across campus.
Cox said that she was able to access the shuttle service by calling Public Safety, and did not need to utilize the TransLoc app. “I just called Public Safety … they picked me up at the corner of Campbell and dropped me off wherever I needed,” said Cox.
Jeremy Andre, GSB ’28, said that he was unaware that Fordham had an on-campus shuttle service, despite being an employed driver of Fordham’s Intercampus Transportation System since last February. Andre said that he wishes the university advertised the service more.
When asked how he would use the service, Andre said, “Just [for] getting to class and moving across campus … It’s not super inconvenient, but just having that option would be really nice.”
As Fordham works to increase community awareness of the shuttle service, Byrnes said that the shuttle remains a crucial component in terms of making the campus more accessible for students with mobility issues and disabilities.
“Public Safety is a great partner and is always willing to help out the community when possible, so that is why Public Safety tries to provide this student-run shuttle whenever possible,” Byrnes said.
