Cambus is an American public transportbus system, primarily serving the University of Iowa campus in Iowa City, Iowa. The service is intended to provide transportation for students, faculty, and staff around the main campus, University of Iowa Research Park, residence halls, and commuter parking lots. Cambus is a zero-fare service open to the general public, and provides approximately 3,000,000 rides per year. It is one of three transit systems in the Iowa City area, the other two being Iowa City Transit and Coralville Transit, and Cambus shares several stops with them.
The service is operated by the Department of Parking and Transportation for the University of Iowa with funding from the Parking & Transportation Department, a UI Student fee, and the Federal Transportation Administration. Cambus employs approximately 170 employees. There are only six non-student employees who work specifically for Cambus: the Cambus Manager, the Maintenance Supervisor, and four full-time mechanics. All other employees, including drivers, dispatchers, trainers, student mechanics, and departmental supervisors, are students currently enrolled at the University of Iowa.
Cambus also has two different buildings on the University of Iowa campus. The main office is located on Evashevski Drive, north Kinnick Stadium, called the West Campus Transportation Center. Cambus moved operations to this newer building, shared with the Parking & Transportation department, on November 16, 2012. The Cambus Maintenance Facility, often called "The Barn" by employees, is located on South Madison Street south of the Campus Recreation and Wellness Center.
History
Cambus was founded by University of Iowa students and has been in operation since March 1972. The name "Cambus" was the result of a naming contest. It started with seven vehicles dating from 1955 and 1956.[1] By 1975, the fleet had grown to 11 vehicles. Twelve new buses were purchased the following year. In 2004, the fleet had 32 vehicles.[2] The University of Iowa campus is divided into east and west halves by the Iowa River. Most Liberal Arts and Sciences classes take place on the east side of the river; thus the purpose of the new bus service was to facilitate easier transportation between the west-side dormitories and the east-side classrooms. At first there was no name for this service, so the founding students created a contest open to all UI students to select one. "Cambus" was the name eventually chosen and the winner, Rod Speidel, a junior graphic design student, was awarded two free pizzas.
The first Cambus buses were used school buses, repainted by Cambus employees. There were three different bus routes; Red Route, Blue Route, and the Interdorm Shuttle. Cambus also acquired a trailer, which was used as their main office; this was located in the Hancher Auditorium parking lot.
In the 2013 financial year, ridership reached 4.5 million.[3]
In October, 2018, Cambus routes and schedules were integrated with Google Maps.[4]
Routes
Cambus currently has thirteen routes in service.[5]
During Academic service (the Spring and Fall semesters), all routes run on weekdays with limited service on the weekends. During Summer and Interim service a limited service runs without any weekend service. Route maps and schedules are available on the Cambus website and in pamphlets available on the buses. Cambus time is set by the Master Clock at the US Naval Observatory.[6]
During academic service the earliest route begins at 4:30 am and the last route ends at 1:02 am (2:12 am on Friday and Saturday nights for SafeRide)
Cambus also provides special service for university-affiliated groups, including shuttle service for most Hawkeye football games (to/from downtown, Hancher, and the Hawkeye Commuter Lot), men's Hawkeye basketball games (to/from Hancher), and other events on campus.
Following a recommendation from the Iowa City Area Transit Study (ICATS), Cambus began using route numbers in July 2021.[7]
Route 31 at Downtown Interchange/Schaeffer Hall.
Route list
No.
Name
Route
Notes
31
Red Route
WCTC → Hardin Library → Hancher East → Mayflower Hall (31M only) → Currier Hall → Schaeffer Hall → Rienow Hall
31M via Mayflower Hall
32
Blue Route
WCTC → Slater Hall → Communications Center → Macbride Hall → Mayflower Hall (32M only) → Hancher West → VA Hospital
32M via Mayflower Hall
33
South Campus Shuttle
IMU → Clinton & College → Prentiss & Madison
34
Research Park
VA Loop → MERF → East Lot → IREH
Signed as UI Research Park
35
Interdorm
Mayflower Hall → Currier Hall → Schaeffer Hall → Rienow Hall → Macbride Hall → WCTC (35A only) → Pride/Cultural Centers (35B only)
35A via West Campus Transportation Center
35B via Pride/Cultural Centers
36
Mayflower Shuttle
Mayflower Hall → Currier Hall → Schaeffer Hall → Macbride Hall → Burge Hall)
41
Hawk Lot-Hospital
Hawkeye Lot ↔ WCTC
42
Hawkeye-Pentacrest
Macbride Hall → Schaeffer Hall → Newton Road Ramp → VA Loop (to Hawkeye) → HRTC North → Hawkeye Lot 1 → Aspire → VA Loop (to downtown) → MERF
43
Hawkeye Interdorm
Macbride Hall → Mayflower Hall → Currier Hall → Schaeffer Hall → Rienow Hall → WCTC (to Hawkeye) → HRTC North → Hawkeye Lot 1 → Aspire → WCTC (to downtown) → Slater Hall
51
Hospital-Finkbine/Arena
Finkbine Lot South → Arena Lot East → WCTC
Temporarily suspended due to construction at the IAIS railroad crossing on Finkbine Commuter Drive; service replaced by the temporary Finkbine-WCTC and Arena-WCTC routes.[8]
52
Finkbine-Pentacrest
Macbride Hall → Schaeffer Hall → Newton Road Ramp → VA Loop (to lots) → WCTC (52N only) → Finkbine Lot South → Arena Lot East → VA Loop (to downtown) → MERF
52N evening service via West Campus Transportation Center
Live bus tracking using GPS was introduced in 2010 with the BONGO (Bus on the Go) service.[9] This was replaced in December 2019 with bus tracking in the Transit app.[10]
Bionic Bus
In accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Cambus provides paratransit service called the Bionic Bus for University staff, faculty, and students. There are up to 3 paratransit buses in service during normal academic service (fewer run on weekends and during interim service). The service is demand-response curb-to-curb and serves much of Iowa City and Coralville. Student drivers are specially trained for Bionic Bus. Unlike Iowa City Transit and Coralville Transit, the paratransit service is handled in-house and not contracted to Johnson County SEATS.
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