Campus News
Cross-Town Connection
A new ASI initiative provides a free lift for students who need to get off campus to shop for crucial supplies.
By Larry Peña // Photos courtesy of ASI
ASI President Tanner Schinderle introduces the new shuttle service at a preview run last spring.
After Associated Students, Inc. (ASI) piloted a shuttle service last spring, students on campus now have free rides to local grocery stores in San Luis Obispo twice a week on the Grocery Tripper Shuttle.
According to ASI president Tanner Schinderle, who spearheaded the initiative last year as ASI chief of staff, 40% of Cal Poly students face some level of food insecurity — financial or practical obstacles standing between them and their next meal.
ASI launched the shuttle service in partnership with Campus Health and Wellbeing’s Basic Needs program in response to a series of surveys and focus groups in which students shared their challenges in navigating campus life.
“We heard students who were running out of food on their meal plans,” said Schinderle. “We heard about students with allergies who had to get to a grocery store to get specific foods. We heard from continuing students up in Poly Canyon Village, who have access to a market in their neighborhood, but that small market can’t provide for all the needs of the entire group who lives there.”
It’s been really cool to be able to see a project from start to finish that we know has impacted lives of students on this campus.
The shuttle service, with buses provided by San Luis Obispo’s SafeRide program, runs twice a week, Fridays and Sundays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Three different routes take students from campus housing hubs directly to Trader Joe’s, Food for Less and Target on the opposite side of town. Rides are free for all students.
In addition to the transportation service, students can also work with ASI to access the statewide program CalFresh to help pay for groceries.
The shuttle has been a lifeline for first-year students unable to keep a car on campus, or others who need additional food access that other campus resources can’t provide. During the pilot phase of the program last spring, the shuttle service provided nearly 8,000 rides to students over eight weeks.
Students line up for a trip into town during a test run of the grocery shuttle service last spring.
“I was a first-year student, and I didn’t have any mode of transportation that wouldn’t cost me a significant amount of money,” said Josiah Staley, a political science student who used the shuttle frequently during the pilot phase. “Ubers and Zipcars are not cheap. So having that option to hop on a bus on campus and get where I needed to go was super helpful.”
Schinderle, a political science student who plans to go to law school and eventually into public service, sees the shuttle as an example of what good government can do for the community it serves.
“I really have a deep love for public policy, and I think this is a tangible example of policymakers listening to their constituents and creating an initiative that actually answers the needs they’ve told us about,” said Schinderle. “It’s been really cool to be able to see a project from start to finish that we know has impacted lives of students on this campus.”
Your Next Read
Dozens of students aiming for careers in medicine are earning clinical hours at Campus Health and Wellbeing.
From DJ’ing to playing in the Arab Music Ensemble, music student Amir Williams makes art that moves people.
