With the opening of Penn Park, the University’s campus now spans more than 300 acres—or about the size of 300 football fields. Without a bicycle or a golf cart, getting around campus can mean taking a long walk.  

A new initiative by Penn Transit Services, the Campus Loop bus, makes it easier for the Penn community to travel anywhere on campus, day or night.

Penn Transit now offers shuttle service on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. from all campus transit stops to a new pick-up point at the Levy Tennis Pavilion, just west of Penn Park. PennCard holders should show their cards to the driver and may bring as many as two non-card holders along.

“The campus is now wider than it’s ever been, 40th to 30th streets,” says Brian Shaw, a director in Penn’s Business Services Division who oversees transportation. “It’s a 25-minute walk. You can ride the bus in less time than that.”

Penn employees with parking permits at either the garage above Fresh Grocer at 40th and Walnut streets or Penn Park’s new 210-space lot will find that the Campus Loop bus is a convenient way to reach offices or labs. The Penn Park lot will soon be the first fully automatic University parking lot accessible to visitors, who can pay a flat $8 rate with exact cash or a credit card for a day’s parking.

Student interest was a significant factor in developing a daytime shuttle, says Matthew Brown, associate director of transportation. “Incoming students asked why there was no daytime service around campus,” he says.

Shaw says, “Students who live in Hamilton Village should be able to get to Penn Park easily.”

From 6 p.m. until Penn Park closes at midnight, visitors can call 215-898-RIDE to request a pickup. They will be driven to the nearest transit stop at 34th and Walnut streets, where they can access regular Penn Transit bus and shuttle services.

Penn Transit, which was previously a nighttime bus service for the Penn community, has developed these new services as part of the University’s Sustainable Transportation Initiative.