On Feb. 8, the Safety Shuttle, a van service operated by Dickinson College, crashed outside of the High Street Residence. The student who crashed it declined to comment, however Dee Danser, Assistant Vice President for Compliance and Campus Safety, said, “All accidents are investigated and we take corrective action as necessary. In this case the accident was investigated by Carlisle Police and reviewed by Public Safety.”

She went on to say, “All Safety Shuttle drivers receive driver safety training. Unfortunately, accidents still do occur.” Greg Kintzele ’25, who has worked as a safety shuttle driver for a little over a semester, explained the training to The Dickinsonian: “The training process was very similar to training on how to drive. But it wasn’t very extensive with the skills you need.” 

He said, of the qualification process, “It was driving around campus and a DPS officer would drive with you and just make sure you weren’t running red lights, running stop lights, not doing anything explicitly illegal.” He added, “There is a, like, a driver’s-ed course you need to take beforehand but it’s very rudimentary. It’s very much like stuff you need to take when you take your driver’s permit [test].”

To become a Safety Shuttle driver, students must have their license for three years. “You get this small amount of training and get to drive a van full of students anywhere pretty much,” said Kintzele.

The Safety Shuttle began in Fall of 2010 and runs seven days a week when classes are in session between 5 PM and 12 AM. Shuttle stops include Adams/Witwer, Morgan Circle, Goodyear parking lot, McKenney Suites, Factory Apartments, Denny Hall and Walmart, but “if you call DPS non-emergency for the Safety Shuttle, we will come to you pretty much no matter where you are,” Kinzele explained. 

“Most people who are currently driving the shuttle have no accidents on their records,” said Kinzele. “The Safety Shuttle job is to keep students safe at night,” repeated Kintzele “I don’t want to dissuade people from taking the shuttle. It’s very safe.”

Danser said, “There has been no impact [by the accident] on the Safety Shuttle program.”