by Amy M. Boyle
Staff Writer
Bicycling, walking, carpooling and vanpooling are all ways for University of La Verne’s employees and students to participate in the Rideshare Program.
The program was taken over by Donna Cameron, employee transportation coordinator, four years ago. Cameron has brought to the rideshare program new and innovative ideas, including the new vanpool.
She drives the van from Monrovia, where she lives, to carpool with employees of the University who live along the way. There are currently only about five people utilizing the vanpool, and Cameron says not one person rides everyday on a regular basis.
“There are some disadvantages to the vanpool, like if you want to run errands right after work, you aren’t able to do that or have that freedom. That is why not everyone vanpools all the time,” said Cameron.
She has tried to incorporate students and not just employees into the vanpool, but many students do not have an 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. schedule that would allow them to participate.
Another program started by Cameron is the earning of rideshare scrip. This program involves La Verne merchants who have contributed to the school by donating their goods so that the rideshare participants can earn $1 in scrip, which they can spend at any participating La Verne merchant.
“It’s great. We do our part to clean up our environment and we get to spend scrip at La Verne community businesses,” said Tracee Phanco, Student Accounts assistant, and rideshare participant.
Another program is the bicycle program, where the rideshare budget allows for the purchase of a new bicycle for an employee who promises to ride their bike for three months. After the three months, the person can purchase the bike at half the price and keep the bike.
Currently, there are 54 employees and 26 students involved in the rideshare program.
Parking without a permit is an offense. If caught by the La Verne Police Department, a citation will be issued.
Anyone interested in more information about the rideshare program can contact Cameron at ext. 4901.
