It’s 2 a.m., you don’t feel safe to drive and you need a ride home. Call your mom? Not an option. Call a cab? You’re broke. The solution? RamRide – a free, safe, no-questions-asked ride home after a night out.
Started in October of 2003, this student-run program operates through volunteers on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights.
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It works like this: a student calls the RamRide number, (970) 491-3333, gives their whereabouts and home address to the dispatcher. The dispatcher then gets that student on a waiting list for the nearest RamRide driver to pick them up and take them home. RamRide can provide rides for up to five students per car.
According to Sara Williams, executive director of RamRide, wait time can range from 20 to 45 minutes, depending on the number of people in your party and the time of the call.
“Your wait time will be longer if you have four or five people in your party, and it’ll be shorter with three or less people,” Williams said.
RamRide is a strictly volunteer operation, using students on every end of the ride. As a volunteer, you will be working as a dispatcher, driver or navigator starting. The shifts go from 8:30 p.m. to 2 a.m. on Thursdays and end at 3 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. Students can volunteer as individuals or in groups.
On Thursdays, RamRide operates using nine cars and 24 volunteers. On Fridays and Thursdays, 46 volunteers are needed for the 19 cars in operation.
RamRide is currently developing a iPhone and Android compatible Smartphone dispatcher app. The app will allow users to get in the queue right from their phone, using their GPS coordinates to match the nearest RamRide vehicle.
Volunteering gives students an opportunity to make connections with their CSU community and keeps 1,000 people off the roads each night by giving them a safe, free ride. RamRide fulfills community service hours and also recently began incentivizing student organizations with a $1000 gift if they bring 30 volunteers for one night of operation.
“Since we’ve started doing that, we’ve almost had too many volunteers,” Williams said. “It’s nice to be able to turn people away.”
To volunteer, head down to the RamRide office located at in the lower lobby of the Lory Student Center across from Cam’s Lobby Shop. You can also volunteer online at www.ramride.colostate.edu or email RamRide@colostate.edu.
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According to Williams, RamRide does not take students to parties, and if they become aware of a party, the address is flagged and students will only be picked up, not delivered to this address.
“We pick up from any location, but only take students to home addresses,” Williams said.
Williams stresses that RamRide is for any student in need of a ride, not just those who have been drinking. Although the majority of pick-ups come from house parties, RamRide also operates in Old Town.
“Try giving us a call, if you need a ride home for any reason,” Williams said. “We really just want to take students home safely, even if they’re in a situation where they don’t feel safe.”
Collegian News Editor Hannah Hemperly can be reached at news@collegian.com.
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