This semester Campus Safety discontinued the late-night Jitney service. The late-night Jitney service provided students with safe transportation to downtown Clinton and back between the hours of 9:30 p.m. to 2:00 a.m. on the weekends. Any student above the age of 21 was allowed to ride the Jitney down to Clinton, and all students regardless of age were allowed to ride the Jitney back up to campus. Unlike the daytime Jitney, the late-night Jitney was a large bus instead of the usual Hamilton vans. The larger vehicle was to make sure space for all students to get home safely at night.
With COVID regulations somewhat relaxed this year, students are now allowed to socialize off-campus in downtown Clinton again, but they no longer have the security of the late-night Jitney as a ride home. Students Natalie Harrity ’23 and Merrill Storch ’23 both spoke on this issue expressing how much they miss the late-night Jitney and how they hope for its return. “I want the luxury back to feel safe coming home,” said Harrity. Both students remarked on how the discontinuation of the late-night Jitney was often a topic of discussion among their friends as they now had to organize other ways of transportation to go downtown. Harrity and Storch were disappointed as finding transportation had never been an issue for them previously.
In an interview, the Director of Campus Safety, Frank Coots, in an interview, explained that the decision to cancel the late-night Jitney this semester was a combination of the changing nature of the pandemic, the closure of The Village Tavern and the significant amount of time it takes to organize the late-night Jitney with the bus provider. The lack of communication to the student body about the cancellation of the late-night Jitney this semester was not intentional. The level of communication from the Campus Safety and Transportation offices remained the same from last year.
The return of the late-night Jitney is a continued possibility and will be evaluated on a semester-by-semester basis. In conversation with Campus Safety, the President’s office and other administrators, the decision will be based on the state of the pandemic and information from local authorities on the safety of students socializing in downtown Clinton. In the meantime, Coots recommends students choose a designated driver for their group to stay sober and provide transportation for students who wish to continue to socialize downtown. Coots also mentioned that, while not ideal in the pandemic, ridesharing services such as Uber are available. In an emergency or if a student feels unsafe, the option to contact Campus Safety for a ride to campus remains, and requests for transportation will be assessed independently on a case by case basis.
Students have also raised the concern of equity with this issue. Not everyone has access to a car, has a driver’s license or can afford to use ridesharing apps frequently. Students expressed that this creates a divide within the student body, as those with cars
can enjoy the privilege of going downtown, but others, without cars, do not have access to a free jitney ride anymore at night.
The regular daytime Jitney continues to run daily until 8:00 p.m. providing students with transportation to downtown Clinton and alternating between New Hartford and Utica on the weekends.