Transportation

DRES transportation hours and ride scheduling:

All rides between 5pm-10pm, Monday through Friday, must be scheduled at least 1 business day in advance by calling 217-333-4616.  DRES buses will only be available after 5pm, Monday through Friday through scheduling with no call in service available after 5 pm.  DRES transportation will continue to service rides after 5pm that have already been scheduled for the Fall 2023 semester.  If you have any questions regarding this information, please contact the Coordinator, Mylinda Netherton @ mylindag@illinois.edu.

Ride Request Form

If you have not yet registered with our department for qualified services, please get in touch with Student Services at 217-333-1970.

If you need to schedule a ride, contact Mylinda Netherton at 217-244-4104 or email mylindag@illinois.edu.

DRES Bus Ridership Guidelines

DRES’ Office of Accessibility and Transportation offers transportation service from established pickup locations on campus. Qualified rides include those to:

  • Class
  • On-campus residence
  • Medical appointments
  • University sponsored events

How it works

  1. Regular Routes
  2. Night Rides
  3. Call-in Services for Temporary Needs
  4. Other Qualified Rides
  5. Persons with Temporary Disabilities

Prior to the beginning of each semester, the Coordinator of Accessibility and Transportation prepares a ride request form, sends the form to all registered students for qualified rides, compiles the ride information, and approves all rides. Riders are required to complete the Ride Request Form for specific rides desired from place of residence to class, class to class, and class to place of residence.

Ride pickup locations may change due to the number of available buses, a student’s individual ride needs, and/or inclement weather conditions. The Office of Accessibility and Transportation will make every effort to contact riders in a timely manner via email, phone calls, and web site announcements regarding changes in ridership, pickup locations, and services.

The following sections give specific information on regular routes, night rides, call-in services, and other qualified rides.

Bus service at a glance

Regular Routes

The Office of Accessibility and Transportation offers regular route service with pickups from the place of residence to classes beginning from the Rehabilitation Education Center at 7:30 a.m. and each half-hour thereafter (8:30 a.m., 9:30 a.m., etc.), Monday through Friday. The last pickup time on the regular routes is 3:30 p.m. Regular route return rides from campus begin at 8 a.m., and each hour thereafter (9 a.m., 10 a.m., etc.), Monday through Friday. The last regular route ride returning from campus is at 4 p.m. Students have the choice of several locations for return rides depending on their campus location.

Night Rides

The Office of Accessibility and Transportation has a driver on duty for night rides for classes and evening activities from 5 p.m. until 6:30 p.m. and from 7:15 p.m. until 10 p.m., Monday through Friday. Students are required to schedule these rides by no later than 4 p.m. on the evening the ride is desired. After 4:30 p.m., the night driver can be reached via cell phone at 217-369-6830. Due to mandated break requirements, there will be no transportation service from 6:30 p.m. until 7:15 p.m., Monday through Friday.

Call-in Services for Temporary Needs

The Office of Accessibility and Transportation offers call-in services from 7:30 a.m. until 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, for rides that are not needed on a regular weekly basis. Examples include medical appointments and rides provided for class exams. In order to be able to best serve these needs, the rider is required to give at least one hour advance notice prior to needing the scheduled ride. All rides must be scheduled through the main office.

Other Qualified Rides

  • Weekend rides: Weekend transportation is available for classes, university sponsored activities, and special events that are pre-approved. Riders requesting weekend rides must call our office by 3 p.m. the Wednesday before the weekend ride is desired. Riders must provide the Office of Accessibility and Transportation the exact number of anticipated riders for all events, including number of personal assistants.
  • Off-campus rides: The Office of Accessibility and Transportation offers limited service off campus beyond the university district area for university classes, activities, and special events. The university district area is defined as University Avenue to the north, Neil Street to the west, Windsor Road to the south, and Race Street to the east. All requests for off-campus rides are received through the main office and must be pre-approved by the Coordinator.

Persons With Temporary Disabilities

The Office of Accessibility and Transportation provides ride services on campus for persons with temporary disabilities. Persons with temporary disabilities requesting rides must register for DRES services prior to scheduling regular rides. Persons with permanent disabilities take priority over those with temporary disabilities when rides are scheduled. The Office of Accessibility and Transportation will make every effort to accommodate riders as service time allows.

DRES transportation hours and ride scheduling:

Notification to all DRES patrons beginning Tuesday, November 9, 2021, all rides between 5pm-10pm, Monday through Friday, must be scheduled at least 1 business day in advance by calling 217-333-4616.  DRES buses will only be available after 5pm, Monday through Friday through scheduling with no call in service available after 5pm.  DRES transportation will continue to service rides after 5pm that have already been scheduled for the Fall 2021 semester.  If you have any questions regarding this information, please contact the Coordinator, Mylinda Netherton @ mylindag@illinois.edu.

Qualified riders

  • Fill out a Ride Request Form for semester-long transportation needs.
  • Call 217-333-4616 for temporary rides from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. M-F.
  • Schedule night rides (5-10 p.m. M-F) by calling 217-333-4616 before 4 p.m. on evening of ride.
  • Please remember we do not service rides from 6:15pm-7:15pm, M-F, due to the night driver break period.

To become qualified: If you have not yet registered with DRES, contact the DRES Student Services Office at 217-333-4603.

Contact

Office of Accessibility & Transportation hours: 7:30 a.m. to 5p.m. M-F

V: 217-333-4616

The night driver can be reached at 217-369-6830 from 4:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. The office is closed on campus holidays. Limited service is available when class is not in session.