The UW-Madison SAFEride cab program ended its services this June and will not continue next school year due to budget cuts.
The service, which was managed by UW Transportation Services, offered each student six free late-night cab rides per semester within the campus area. The $120,000 program was funded entirely through mandatory student segregated fees.
The Student Services Finance Committee, which makes recommendations on the distribution of student segregated fees on the UW-Madison campus, restored SAFEride’s funding in April, but UW Transportation Services decided to end its involvement with the program.
“We informed [the Associated Students of Madison] that due to the uncertainty and lack of commitment, Transportation Services would no longer administer the cab service,” Commuter Solutions Manager Darwin Ward said in an email.
SSFC originally voted to cut the cab service’s funding in March due to its declining use, but reversed its decision and restored the program’s funding shortly after many students spoke out against termination of the service.
ASM Vice Chair Maria Giannopoulos said the lack of administrative involvement from Transportation Services left ASM with no choice but to discontinue the service entirely.
“Transportation Services said ‘we’re not going to run the program, and we’re not going to put in our portion,’” Giannopoulos said. “So that’s where the disconnect comes in because they’re unwilling to do their part.”
Giannopoulos said ASM is increasing its commitment to educating students about nighttime safety following the removal of the SAFEride cab service.
“We’re looking more holistically at safety on campus,” Giannopoulos said. “We’re trying to educate people about where to walk, to stay in groups, and we’re also doing our sexual assault awareness campaign.”
Ward said Transportation Services remains committed to nighttime campus safety and is looking into future improvements to its current services.
“We are studying the campus bus route system for possible future improvements, and included in that study are various options for improving nighttime travel across campus as well as travel for mobility-impaired individuals,” Ward said.
Transportation Services will continue its other nighttime services, SAFEwalk and SAFEride buses, in the fall.
CORRECTION: The headline was changed from "SAFEride cab program ends due to lack of funding" to the current headline to more accurately reflect the article.
