Cornell, Ithaca College & TC3 Students Spring 2024

Time to study and you can do it in transit. TCAT offers free WiFi on all buses

Welcome College Students

TCAT’s 2024 Spring service goes into effect Sun., Jan. 21

Cornell University

Cornell Student 2023-2024 Ride Guide

+ New students should check out the North- and Central-Campus Ride Guide

Spring service starts Sun., Jan. 21, with some adjustments from the last semester so be sure to check new schedules before you ride..

 

How to use the farebox 

Those with Cornell IDs loaded with pre-programmed passes should swipe their IDs upon boarding. (No tap.)

  • CU ID Card Privileges: Cornell University pays for all of its students to receive unlimited free rides on all TCAT buses after 6 p.m. weekdays, and anytime Saturday and Sunday.
  • New Student? Additionally, the university generously provides all new-to-Cornell students unlimited free rides on TCAT buses 24/7!  These privileges are automatically added to your ID. Just SWIPE on the farebox and go.
  • OmniRide for non-First Years: Need more than just night and weekend bus access? Purchase OmniRide at a university-subsidized rate and use your CU ID card at the farebox for unlimited rides on all TCAT buses anytime and anywhere across Tompkins County!

For more details about Cornell’s OmniRide and other transportation-related questions, please go to the university’s transportation page

Students must be registered for privileges to remain active.

Note: Of course, those who do not wish to use their IDs for fare always have other payment options as do all riders. TCAT accepts cash fare ($1.50 per ride/ exact change only) or Tcards, our magstripe fare media. Later this fall, TCAT will roll out new smartcards and mobile apps. Students or any member of the Cornell community who use IDs for their fare will not be able to transfer their privileges to the smartcard or the app, but can chose to use those fares instead of the IDs. There will be an online portal to buy passes on demand, so this might be a good option for those who want to simply ride now and then instead of every day.

ARCHIVE

CORNELL RIDE GUIDE 2022
CORNELL NEW STUDENT INFO + NORTH CAMPUS RIDE GUIDE

ITHACA COLLEGE

Our ride guide developed specifically for IC students is HERE.

TCAT’s Spring service starts Sun., Jan. 21, with slight changes to IC/South Hill with both routes 11 and 65.  These routes connect downtown with 25 routes that serve all parts of Tompkins County, including many beautiful trails and parks. Fall service ends the night of Sat., Jan. 20, at which time this page will be updated with springsl schedules.

Due to backend programming delays, there is no capability yet for IC students to upload passes right onto their IDs and take advantage of generous subsidies that IC has been providing since 2010.

To ease the impact to the Ithaca College community and encourage ridership on Ithaca’s community transportation system, employees and students can continue to ride for free during the Spring Semester (as they have for Fall.)  Realizing the significant disruption and work-around required to accommodate the delay of the new fare collection system, Ithaca College has arranged to continue these subsidies through the spring semester.

To ride the TCAT system: All you need to do is show your ID to the driver when you board the bus.  It doesn’t get much easier than that!  If you forget your ID, however, you will need to pay the cash fare of $1.50 per ride (exact change only.) Just so you know, TCAT’s routes 11 and 65 directly serves campus, but your ID can get you on any TCAT buses wherever and whenever they are operating. Also note that if you need more than one bus to get to your destination, please ask the driver for a transfer slip. Riders are allowed up to two transfer slips, but only to complete a continuous one-way trip; not for a return trip to where you originally boarded.)

ARCHIVE:
ITHACA COLLEGE RIDE GUIDE 2022

TC3

Our ride guide developed specifically for TC3 students is HERE.

TC3 is served directly by route 43 to locations in Dryden and downtown Ithaca, where you can transfer to most any route in the TCAT system TCAT has 25 routes that serve all parts of Tompkins County, including many beautiful trails and parks. Fall service ends the night of Sat., Jan. 20, at which time this page will be updated with spring schedules that will be in effect Sun. Jan. 21, through May 25.

 

 

Unfortunately, as with Ithaca College, TC3 students can no longer load TCAT passes onto their IDs.

You can pay cash (exact change only) at $1.50 per adult ride (half fare or $0.75 for persons with disabilities and seniors 60 and older)

If you want to use a card, you will need to use regular fare media, Tcards, which are sold by calling TCAT at (607)277-RIDE (7433) or by emailing TCAT at tcat@tcatmail.com (please write TC3 passes in subject line) with your phone number so that we can contact you for a secure transaction with your credit card. TCAT can mail passes directly to students or TCAT staff will deliver passes to TC3 for convenient pickup.(More details about delivery will be available soon.) Passes can also be purchased in person at TCAT’s main facility, 737 Willow Ave., Ithaca. Customer service is open Mon.-Fri. 8am to 5pm. 

AND GOOD NEWS. Due to this inconvenience, as we did during the Fall semester, TCAT is continuing to offer monthly and 15-ride passes at a BIG discount for enrolled TC3 students throughout the Spring semester. 

  •  31 Days – $25 (retail value $45.00)
  •  15-ride – $10 ( retail value $20)

Current Tcards use magnetic stripes (see image of Tcard and new fare box, right.) Simply swipe your Tcard  (with the mag stripe facing you) on the reader and go. You can add as many of those two types of subsidized passes onto your Tcard as you would like.  Students can also use cash fare or a number of other fare card options. (Even regular prices are pretty inexpensive. TCAT hasn’t raised fares for more than a decade!)

Just so you know, TCAT’s route 43 directly serves campus for trips to and from Dryden and downtown. You can ride any bus you would like whenever and wherever TCAT runs. Also note that you only need to swipe your card one time (one fare deducted from your ride-based card) for single continuous ride to your destination, but you will need to ask the driver for a transfer slip. Riders are allowed up to two transfer slips, but only to complete a continuous one-way trip; not for a return trip to where you originally boarded.) If you have an expiration-based pass (such as monthly) you won’t need a transfer slip; just swipe your card on the buses. Expiration-based passes allow you to use your pass as many times as you would like within the set period. The clock starts ticking when you first swipe the card on the bus.  So, say you first swipe your card on the first day of classes on Aug. 28, you have 31 one days to ride through Sept. 27.

ARCHIVE:

TC3 2022 Ride Guide

 

 

Just an FYI

TCAT operates three service periods per year:

Fall: late August through late January

Spring:  late January through late May

   Summer:  late May through late August   

We update our website toward the end of each service period to alert you about upcoming changes.