Sustainable Campus

Transportation

As an urban campus located in the heart of downtown St. Petersburg, USF St. Petersburg works closely with our city neighbors to offer transportation alternatives which help the environment and the community.

“I’d like to thank the University of South Florida St. Petersburg for taking the initiative and working with our team to help bring this innovative and clean technology to campus, that will benefit its students, faculty, staff and visitors.”

– Jeff Baker, Government and Community Relations Manager for Duke Energy, during the unveiling of new electric vehicle charging stations on campus.

Sustainable transportation goals

  • Increase carpooling participation by campus community members.
  • Encourage walking or biking as the primary mode of transportation for campus community members to and from campus 
  • Introduce shuttle services for the campus community members living within a five mile radius of the campus.
  • Increase infrastructure that support alternative modes of transport for the campus community as well as alternative fuel vehicles for on-campus utilization.

Projects/Current efforts

1. Bike Share Programs

Many bicycle and mixed-use paths throughout campus and in the city of St. Petersburg makes it convenient and safe for the campus community to bike to and from campus. 

  • Bike-A-Bull share Program. This is an on-campus bike-share program. Students only need their university ID to rent a bike for as short as an hour or as long as a week. After receiving a list of traffic laws and signing an agreement waiver, students are assigned a Sea Wind beach cruiser and given two lights, a helmet and a lock (with the option of a basket).

    There are no costs associated with this program for current USF students and Campus Recreation members. For a small fee, guests of USF students and Campus Recreation members may check out a bike for same day use. Want to rent a bike? Stop by the Waterfront between the hours of 11 a.m. and 5 p.m.

  • Coast Bikes share Program.To increase the capacity of rental bikes, we partnered with the City of St. Petersburg to secure discounts with Coast bikes, which included the placement of a bike share hub on campus providing easy access for students to rent and ride a bike.

2. Ride Share Programs

USF St. Petersburg continues to embrace innovative approaches to reduce the dependence on the single-occupant automobile as the primary mode of travel.

  • Special Parking Lots. Parking spaces dedicated for low-emission vehicles are available at central parking lots on campus. These can be found in Lot 2 (P2) and Lot 19 (P19).

3. PSTA U Pass Program & SunRunner

Under PSTA’s Universal Pass (U-Pass) program, USF St. Petersburg campus students, faculty and staff can ride any of the 200 Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority (PSTA) buses and trolleys for free. Riders simply show their University ID card when boarding a bus or trolley. USF St. Petersburg campus pays PSTA a flat rate to provide unlimited access to buses and trolleys. (Buses stop regularly on campus, on 6th Avenue near the Butterfly Garden).

In 2022, PSTA launched the SunRunner, a hybrid electric rapid bus that can take individuals from downtown to the beach in 35 minutes. There is a bus stop for the SunRunner right outside campus by the University Police Department, with service arriving every 15 minutes. Like other PSTA buses and trolleys, it is free for USF St. Petersburg campus students, faculty and staff.

4. Electric Vehicle Charging Stations

There are six electric vehicle (EV) charging stations on campus.  In the parking garage, there is a DC fast charger unit, which can provide up to 100 miles of range in 30 minutes. While in parking lot 2 and 7, there are Level 2 charging stations that can provide up to 30 miles of range in an hour.  USF St. Petersburg Campus Map (.pdf)

All charging units are open to the public and require a valid USF St. Petersburg campus parking pass. Learn more about parking passes.

All stations were installed at no cost to the University by Duke Energy as part of its Park and Plug pilot program.