Syracuse University students will soon offer a new way to travel around campus.

The university is purchasing four trolleys that will each seat 16 to 22 people, SU announced last week. The trolleys are slated to debut in November.

The announcement comes after the university’s contract with Birnie Bus expired. The trolleys are set to take over all of the routes Birnie Bus handles, which includes transportation on the Euclid Shuttle, Warehouse Express, Quad Shuttle and Late Night Orange Express.

“The benefits of the trolleys are substantial, beyond the cost savings,” said Jenn Horvath, communications director for SU’s Division of Business, Finance and Administrative Services, in an email to The Daily Orange. “The trolleys will have more modern accessibility features, including air suspension for kneeling, ramps, and low floors; and Parking and Transit Services will also be able to adjust routes more quickly if needed in response to community feedback.”

SU will have renderings of the new trolleys by October, Horvath said. SU will see significant savings with the trolleys by hiring workers in-house instead of contracting it through an outside company, she said. Horvath did not respond to a follow-up email inquiring about the cost of the four trolleys, or how much money the university will save in total from the switch.

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When reached by telephone, Rahmin Azria, assistant director of transportation, logistics and finance for Parking and Transit Services, said he was not permitted to disclose information about the trolleys.

It is unclear what company SU is buying its trolleys from. New trolleys listed on the Trolley Brokers LLC website, which sells new and used trolleys, range between $150,000 and over $200,000 each.

Few of SU’s peer institutions have adopted their own trolley system. Boston University, the University of Miami, the University of Connecticut and the University of Dayton have trolley services available near their campus that are run by their respective cities. Pennsylvania State University lists a trolley bus on its transportation website. No other peer institutions list trolley-related services on their websites.

The Euclid Shuttle was installed in January 2018 and runs from College Place, down Euclid Avenue and into the Westcott Street area. The Warehouse Express runs from SU campus to the Nancy Cantor Warehouse from 11:30 p.m. to 3:15 a.m. The Late Night Orange Express runs on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights from College Place to Mount Olympus, and to Henry and Van Buren Street.

The Quad Shuttle currently runs on weekdays from the Irving Avenue Garage to 400 Ostrom Ave. This year, the route will be expanded to include the Barnes Center at The Arch and other points on campus.

Published on September 8, 2019 at 11:01 pm

Contact Gabe: gkstern@syr.edu | @gabestern326