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Amherst College
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Amherst College - Transportation - Transportation - College ProwlerCollege Prowler2.69

Transportation

C+
Where does this grade come from?View all Transportation rankingsReview this school to add your opinion

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Quick Stats

Best Ways to Get Around Town
  • Almost any location in the town of Amherst is in walking or biking distance.
  • Rent a ZipCar from the College
Best Ways to Get to the Airport
  • A cab ride to the airport costs about $50
  • Peter Pan Bus Lines (Logan Airport only) (800) 237-8747
  • Valley Transporter (shuttle transportation to either airport) (800) 872-8752

Student Author OverviewWhat's This?

When going to any place on campus or in town, Amherst students either walk or bike—when they’re not up to their knees in snow. For farther trips, students usually use the PVTA bus system because Amherst students can travel at no charge to and from the towns of Amherst, Holyoke, and Northampton with their College ID. Free public transportation is provided thanks to the Five-College Consortium, which allows each student who attends one of the five schools in the area to utilize the curriculums of the other four. For longer distances, Peter Pan (the Northeast service provider for Greyhound) is the most efficient option, even though those buses take forever to get anywhere.

Although nothing beats having your own car, there is general satisfaction with the bus service (although some students eventually become tired of riding the long bus routes). A big plus is that the buses run at night, which is a positive influence on the social scene here because it makes all parties accessible to all students in the five-college area. It’s common to see students from other colleges hanging out at Amherst, and these frequent interactions provide another dimension to the vivid social experience here. For students who do not have their own car and are not overly fond of the public transportation system, there is an alternative: ZipCars. These small, environmentally safe vehicles are accessible (for a small fee) to members of the Amherst College community.

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Amherst Student ReviewsWhat's This?

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Transportation at Amherst College

finderfinder

'11

5.0
A+

Free Transportation

Show your student ID and all buses in the area are free!

Jun 24, 2010

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Transportation at Amherst College

AmhSL

Biological Sciences '11

There is a pretty reliable bus...

There is a pretty reliable bus service if you want to go farther away, but downtown Amherst is less than a 5-minute walk. There are also good shuttle services to the airport in Hartford, Connecticut.

Feb 18, 2009

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Transportation at Amherst College

AmhTH

Mathematics & Statistics '12

The buses are free but are...

The buses are free but are sometimes unreliable and do not run as often as one would like.

Feb 17, 2009

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Page 1 of 5
User rating for Amherst College - Transportation is 4.6 out of 5 based on 15 user reviews.

Student Survey Poll ResultsWhat's This?

Rate the cost of the following transit options

Rate the convenience of the following transit options

Rate the convenience of long-distance transportation to travel between home and school

How convenient is the campus-provided transportation?

How necessary is it to have a car on campus?

How easy is it to get around town?

Public TransitWhat's This?

UMass Transit System

Pioneer Valley Transit Authority

provides a free bus service between Amherst College and the four other schools in the area. The bus also has convenient stops at various places between the schools, such as the Big Y.

Nearest AirportWhat's This?

Logan Airport

Logan Airport in Boston is two hours away.

Bradley International Airport

Hartford (45 minutes away), and it provides service for Hartford, Connecticut, and Springfield, Massachusetts.

Nearest Passenger BusWhat's This?

Peter Pan, in partnership with Greyhound

A little Peter Pan establishment and bus stop are right next to campus, and you can purchase tickets there.

(800) 237-8747

www.peterpanbus.com

Nearest Passenger TrainWhat's This?

Amtrak

There is limited service to the Amherst station (13 Railroad St.), but extensive service to the Springfield station (66 Lyman St.), which is 30 minutes away.

(800) 872-7245

www.amtrak.com

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Most Recent Student Author View all

Name
Lem Atanga McCormick
Hometown
Chicago, IL
Major
Pre-Med (Biology and French)

College Prowler is seeking talented student authors to assist with writing and updating the College Prowler guides to their schools. This is a great opportunity for a student to gain experience and tremendous exposure, utilize new media techniques, and share advice with high school students about what life is really like at your college.

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How do we get our information? Find out here or report an error here. The statistics on our site are from the National Center for Education Statistics IPEDS database.
We update this information twice annually, most recently in May 2012, but it may not be the most recent information available for a particular school.
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