Thousands of University of Iowa employees don’t live in Iowa City. Many of them drive to Iowa City every day from cities like Solon, Mount Vernon, Lisbon, Cedar Rapids, West Branch, Tiffin and Riverside. But constantly filling up the gas tank – with unleaded costing more than $4 a gallon – and paying for parking on campus can get expensive.
That’s where the University of Iowa van pool comes in.
Veronica Ruse, 29, joined the Solon van pool last September. She works on campus for the Office of the Registrar. She used to drive to Iowa City every day from Grinnell, an hour west on Interstate 80. She and her boyfriend had only one vehicle, and since her boyfriend worked from home, she would use it to commute to work every day. That was until an unexpected pet emergency left her boyfriend without a vehicle to get to the vet. That’s when she knew they needed to move.
Since moving to Solon, Ruse expressed that the van pool has saved her so much money.
“Financially, it has been huge,” she said. “For a new car, you’re spending thousands of dollars. And then you have to pay insurance on top of that. So, instead of paying all of that, I pay $48 a month to take the van pool. I feel great not having to spend hundreds of dollars a month just to get to work and back.”
The Solon van picks up at 7 a.m. at the Solon Public Library. The van fits up to six riders and costs $48 a month to ride the Solon van.
The UI van pool system started in 1978 due to the rising gas and oil prices. The university wanted to address how its employees could get to work during the high gas prices. There are a total of 62 van pools today. The University provides the vans and pays for the gas. The driver of the van is also someone who uses the van to commute to work. There isn’t a designated driver like you would see on a school bus that drives the riders everywhere.
Michelle Ribble, who works for the Commuter Programs, explained how important that is.
“We’re almost at our 50-year mark, which is pretty crazy to say. I don’t think there are too many programs across the country that have that tenure,” Ribble said.
The UI van pool started picking up Mount Vernon riders in September 1979. The van picks up at the softball diamonds at Elliot Park. It picks up at 7 a.m. and takes about half an hour to get to Iowa City. It costs $63 a month to ride the van.
Rob Dean, 49, of Mount Vernon, works at the University of Iowa Health Care and has been riding the van for three months. He said he heard about the van pool after switching from the hospital in North Liberty to Iowa City. He explained how he started using the van to save gas and wear on his vehicle.
“The main reason was a financial decision. Not having to park and use the CAMBUS has removed the extra steps for me. I just drive to Mount Vernon from Lisbon, park my car, and it saves me gas money and wear on my car and also parking fees,” Dean said. “It has probably saved me $200 a month.”
Avoiding Iowa City parking also motivates Ruse, who is on a waitlist for a UI parking spot near her office.
“The lot closest to my office is $120 a month. That is $1200 a year,” Ruse said. “Plus, the waitlist for the parking is so long. I’m like number 1,300, and I’m not even exaggerating,” she said.
The van pool has helped many people and has been a huge stress reliever for many riders.
“I think it’s one of the best things about working here is that they offer that,” Dean said. “I’ve advised my co-workers to check into the van pool to help them as well.”
The van pool is open to the public for people who work at the University, and you can sign up on the University of Iowa’s van pool program website at https://transportation.uiowa.edu/alternative-transportation/employee-van-pool-program.