Students using ridesharing for holidays
When Trevor Williams began lining up his transportation options for the holidays, he didn’t have to search very far. The Washington State University senior simply logged onto the Pullman2Seattle Rideshare page on Facebook and posted “$25 for a one way trip, #SOS.”
It’s something that was unavailable to students like Williams in the past, but the page has grown in popularity over the past several years, to the point that Williams found a ride within 24 hours.
“As far as I knew there was only Craigslist, and that’s almost like a shot in the dark,” Williams said of sharing rides in years past. “Another friend was just like ‘Go to the page,’ and it’s that easy.”
Williams posted his plea Sunday for a ride to Puyallup, and was one of hundreds of students to post this week. The page was flooded with people just like Williams, who had someone comment on his post about a good person to contact. Soon enough, Williams had a ride with someone from back home, and, unlike Craiglist, he was able to see exactly with whom he would be sharing the five-hour trip.
“This guy that I’m Ridesharing with, he’s actually Facebook friends with my sister, oddly enough,” Williams said.
The popularity of the Pullman2Seattle Rideshare page and the sister Moscow2Anywhere Facebook page has hardly taken away the sustainability of the Wheatland Express, the bus service that students have long used to get rides home. Rather, the company changed its model and adapted with the times to stay in business.
“This happens a lot, especially with college kids, Mom gets on the phone makes a ticket, wants the kids to come home on the bus, they find a buddy to ride home with and don’t want to get on the bus,” said Jolene McKenzie, who helps coordinate Wheatland’s transportation. “Well, they can use that ticket for up to a year after their purchase point so they don’t lose their money.”
Wheatland has thrived under the new model, selling a record 1,500 tickets this year for students to get to Portland, Seattle or other surrounding areas. They have also prided themselves on the array of options for students getting back home. If a student wants to get back to watch Friday’s Apple Cup, there is a 5 p.m. bus leaving Seattle on Thursday, and for students wishing to stay the entire vacation they can come back at 5 p.m. Sunday.
“Parents are very concerned about how their kids are getting back and forth across the state, and we had a pretty prolific move last Christmas break. It was 10 degrees, there was a lot of bad weather last year, and we got all of the kids home safely,” McKenzie said. “That speaks volumes to parents knowing that their kids are going to be safe, and that there is an economical way to travel, and they’re riding with professional drivers.”