They had this nice Instagram content as if they did not aggravate a renowned ridesharing app.
FSU SAFE Ride, the transportation system that is replacing no other than Lyft at Florida State University, started the announcement with an impactful post on Instagram, indicating, “Safe Late Night Rides, Available Now!”
This creatively done Instagram post also reads:
- Free rides begin and end within campus geofence
- Fall/Spring: 8 p.m. to 2:30 a.m. and Summer 8 p.m. to 12 a.m.
- $6 flat rate within larger service area in and around Tallahassee
- Request your ride in the app - just like Lyft
They’re also proud indicating, “Lyft service discontinued April 11.”
Lyft’s curtain call
So yes, FSU SAFE Ride, with cars like vans, is now the all-new university-managed transit system. No coupons are needed, since the flat rate is the affordable $6 rate for any ride with an off-campus start or end-point.
Previously, Lyft was offering a $10 discount for trips between on-campus locations, but it’s kinda clear now why the university chose this brand-new service, since the FSU SAFE Ride only offers free rides between on-campus points.
The zones that are eligible for the free rides include:
- The main campus
- Innovation Park
- College of Engineering
- College of Business
- Seminole Legacy Golf Club
- Intramural Fields
As if Lyft isn’t providing this, but according to the school body, their fresh choice is designed to offer students and other instruments of the school with safer rides, especially at night.
SGA Student Senate liaison to TAPS Ethan Bischof got concerned about the recent uptick in university crime back then while Lyft was serving the school. Arrests have been made towards the ridesharing drivers, plus warnings, but the crimes still did damage.
Their best foot forward
FSU SAFE Ride is making sure that they’re off to a great start.
These rides will run on Slidr – not the platform renowned to students like Adobe Reader – but a third-party transportation provider that specializes micro-transit.
With Slidr, students are not just safe, but also inside rides that are sustainable. This is because Slidr’s fleet features 100 percent electric Volkswagen ID and vans that are GPS-trackable and university-branded. Moreover, students with disabilities will also benefit exclusively, as the rides include Americans with Disabilities Act accessibility options.
“Our contractor – Slidr, now – owns these vehicles, and also we have trained and… fully background-checked drivers,” Bischof pointed out. “So there’s a lot more ability to… control the quality of drivers. At the end of the day, we do want to make sure students are able to get around campus at night without having to make unsafe decisions.”
Students would need to say farewell to the Lyft app, too, as there is a fresh app, the Safe Ride app, from where they can request their rides.
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