Video: Top ten tips for getting to campus without a car

For reasons ranging from finance to fitness, many Lewis & Clark faculty and staff commuters choose various forms of sustainable transportation.

“Lewis & Clark community members are embracing a non-car approach to their commute, and it’s important that we do not consider taking the bus, carpools, and biking, to be ‘alternative’ modes of transportation,” said Hanna Neuschwander,director of communications at the graduate school and a member of a campus committee invested in sustainable transportation. Neuschwander lives in southeast Portland and—depending on circumstances— commutes by carpool, bus, shuttle, bike, motorcycle, or car.

In this video, several faculty and staff commuters discuss the benefits of not driving a car to Lewis & Clark.

Ten fun facts about getting to campus without a car

1. TriMet and programs like Drive Less. Connect. make it easy to combine bike and transit commutes.

TriMet allows riders to load bikes on buses on all routes. You can find a route to campus combining bikes and transit at rtp.trimet.org. Call the Bike Hotline at 503-823-2925 or visit the Bikes and TriMet website for more information about transit bike parking, loading your bike on bus racks, and more.

You can be match ed up anonymously with fellow bike riders with a similar commute at Drive Less. Connect. If you find a match you like, you can connect with the other rider.

2. The Bike Commute Challenge offers free coffee, a bike parade, prizes, and more!

Lewis & Clark student, faculty, and staff bicyclists logged 15,000 miles commuting to and from campus during last year’s bike commute challenge! Sign up for this year’s challenge, win prizes, and experience the rush of victory when we trounce our main competitor, Reed College.

3. Where’s the Pioneer Express? Now there’s an app for that!

The Pioneer Express runs seven days a week and is free to all employees and students. Real-time GPS tracking data for the Pioneer Express is available for Android and iPhones.

4. You can hop on the bus, Gus—and pay half price!

Lewis & Clark provides a 50% subsidy for the cost of monthly TriMet bus passes purchased for use by faculty and staff who do not purchase a parking pass. You can find a route to campus at rtp.trimet.org.

5. CATS can help you get to Lewis & Clark.

Coalition Advocating Transportation Solutions (CATS) has been an active student group on the law school campus for well over a decade. CATS offers maps and directions to Lewis & Clark for bike commuters coming from every corner of Portland.

6. Maps, maps, maps! (Maps are fun.)

Call the City of Portland at 503-823-7082 or visit the City of Portland Bureau of Traffic Management’s Bicycle Program for links to order free maps.

7. Carpooling saves money.

Those who register for Lewis & Clark carpool permits pay discounted parking fees on campus and are entitled to park in specially reserved spaces. Plus, you can save on gas!

8. Carpooling makes you cool.

Maybe you know the answer to each morning’s radio trivia challenge, but you’ve never had a witness to your brilliance. What you need is a carpool. Get one on the L&C carpool Message Board or at drivelessconnect.org.

9. MetroVan Vanpool can cost a quarter of what you would pay to drive alone.

A vanpool is a group of 5 to 15 people who share their commute. The vanpool travels from home (or a prearranged meeting place) to work, school, or other destinations. The MetroVan vanpool program coordinates vanpool services for commuters who travel to Portland for work or school.

10. People’s lives are complicated*, and Lewis & Clark has built in safety nets for non-car commuters like UCar Share and the Emergency Ride Home program.

If a family emergency occurs before it is time for your vanpool to return home, MetroVan provides participants with a free emergency ride home in a cab.

UhaulCarShare is a low-cost car-sharing program for students, faculty, and staff. It’s the perfect way to get around fast without the hassles of car ownership. 

*Disclaimer: this is not the fun part of the fact