Transportation

Oxy students on campus with their bikes

Connecting you with a variety of transportation options, Oxy helps break the stereotype that you need to own a car to get around LA.

There are lots of ways to get where you’re going without making a big impact on air quality and climate. Borrow a bike from Bike Share to check out the surrounding neighborhoods or ride along the L.A. River. Catch a ride on the Bengal Bus or make use of the extensive Metro buses and rail lines to reach Pasadena, Little Tokyo and Santa Monica. Book a Zipcar to run local errands or take weekend trips.

If you do bring a car to Oxy, parking on campus is free with a permit, and you can charge your electric vehicle at our campus stations.

Bike Share

Oxy Bike Share is a student-run free bike rental service. Aside from offering rentals and repairs, Bike Share hopes to create a community focused on sustainability and adventure through a love of bicycles. For more information, contact [email protected]

Bengal Bus

Bengal Bus is a student-run program that provides free and low-cost transportation throughout Oxy's surrounding community. Book your ride to L.A.-area airports and other popular locations including Target, the Highland Park Metro stop, museums, beaches and more! Currently running Monday through Saturday from 6pm to 10pm. Students can schedule a ride with Bengal Bus during regular hours by texting (213) 349-5464.

Metro & TAP card

TAP cards are useful to have on hand for riding L.A. public transit. Riders cannot board the Metro Rail without one, and they make it easier to take Metro buses since you won’t have to fumble for exact change. The card also works for taking L.A.’s DASH and other non-Metro buses. Conveniently, TAP cards can be purchased and reloaded at the Student Activities Center in the Johnson Student Center.

Through the hard work of ASOC Senate, students can ride Metro for free! There is no limit to the number of rides a student can take. First, register to get a U-pass, then stop by the Student Activities Center.

One-way Metro trips cost $1.75, and this covers all transfers to other Metro Rail lines/buses for two hours (note: there is an additional cost for riding the Metro Silver Line and Metro Express Buses). Read this simple how-to guide for using the TAP card to ride the Metro.

Several handy apps for planning public transit trips are Google Maps, Moovit and Transit.

Zipcar

Not all destinations in L.A. are easily accessible by biking or public transit, so having a car is sometimes practical. But the costs of owning a car can be a hardship. Zipcar is a car sharing program that launched at Oxy in 2010, arising from a sustainability class on alternative modes of transportation. Head over to Zipcar's website to sign up for an account to take out the two Zipcars parked on the perimeter of the Booth Hall parking lot in front of Newcomb Hall.

Check out this study on the positive effects of using Zipcar (40% of college members are less likely to buy a car because of their membership).

Additional Sustainability Efforts

Campus Fleet

A total of 34 electric vehicles (EVs) and six hybrid vehicles make up Oxy’s fleet. Electric golf carts are commonly seen traveling around campus as Facilities staff do repairs, Campus Dining caters events, and Postal Operations delivers mail. Campus Safety make their patrols in hybrid sedan vehicles. A Toyota Prius is available for rental.

As old vehicles are replaced in the campus fleet, the fuel efficiency and lower emissions of electric and hybrid vehicles make them an attractive choice. In 2018, four EVs replaced diesel vehicles for Grounds staff and Campus Safety decided to go all-electric when they purchased their golf cart.

Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging Stations

Cleaner air, making a positive impact on climate change and lower maintenance needs are several benefits of driving EVs. Oxy proudly provides charging stations to support electric vehicle EV ownership in our community.

Stations can be found at the Solar Array Parking Lot, the Employee Lot, and in the Collins House/Admissions Parking Structure. Please review our electric vehicle charging policies below to utilize this resource!
Disclaimer: As the demand for electric vehicle charging grows on campus and in our community, Occidental College reserves the right to update fees and policies as needed.

Charging Details for the General Public

We invite our community members to charge on Oxy’s campus at market rate during non-working hours (working hours: 8AM-5PM Monday-Friday). Please review and adhere to Oxy’s parking enforcement policy here. You must have a Chargepoint account to use the charging stations. Please report any issues with the stations directly to Chargepoint.

Charging Discount for Oxy Campus Members

Oxy offers discounted charging for students and free charging for staff, and faculty. See connection instructions, below.

DISCOUNTED CHARGING:In order to use the charging stations you must have a Chargepoint account. Once you have created an account you can connect your account to the Occidental Employee Community using the instructions below. Once your account is successfully verified your charging rate will be reduced from the community rate to the employee rate. You must have a valid Oxy parking permit to use this benefit. Once you have your permit, please "connect" your Chargepoint Account to the "Occidental Employee Community" by using the code EV01953. You will need to provide:

1) The permit number from a current year faculty/staff parking permit

2) Your Oxy ID number

3) Your license plate number 

4) On-Campus Office Location

Note: The Chargepoint Account name must match the Occidental faculty/staff name of the parking permit holder. 

PARKING SPOTS:Each EV port has an assigned parking space that is numbered. Please make sure you park in the parking spots designated for your charging port. For example, the parking spots for EV ports 4 and 5 in the Employee Lot are not directly in front of the charging station, but are to the right of the charging station, as shown in the photo below. 

MOVE YOUR CAR PROMPTLY: You may only park in the charging spots WHILE ACTIVELY CHARGING. We have a limited number of chargers on campus and many in the community who need access. You will receive a notification letting you know that your vehicle is finished charging – you must move it within 30 minutes. Please be courteous and move your vehicle as soon as possible. We will continue to evaluate the charging policy to best serve our community and we reserve the right to charge a fee for vehicles not moved promptly. 

USING THE WAITLIST: Currently a waitlist is configured ONLY for the Employee Lot. If charging ports are not available right away, you may sign up for the waitlist and will be notified of availability in a first-come, first-served fashion. Once a spot opens up, you will have 5 minutes to accept it and 30 minutes to move your car and begin charging. 

REPORTING MAINTENANCE ISSUES: Please report any maintenance concerns directly to ChargePoint through the Chargepoint app (Select the relevant station and choose “Report a Problem” under “Station Details”). Please note, Admissions stations may experience up to a 1 minute delay for charting to initiate. Please be patient. For any concerns about visible physical damage, please submit a maintenance request form.  

REPORTING PARKING ISSUES: Please report any concerns about improper parking to Campus Safety.  The Employee Lot is restricted to permitted employee vehicles between 8AM-5PM.  The Solar lot is available to all Occidental permitted vehicles between 8AM -5PM.  The Admissions stations are available to on and off campus guests at all times.    

Notice of Account Disconnection: If you are ever removed from Employee parking, please attempt to re-register by following the instructions above, including a valid parking pass and Oxy email address. 

DISCOUNTED CHARGING: In order to use the charging stations you must have a Chargepoint account. Once you have created an account you can connect your account to the Occidental Student Community by clicking “Account” > "Connections > " "Browse Connections" > "Education" > "Students - Occidental College." Once your account is successfully verified your charging rate will be reduced from the community rate to the student rate. When connecting, you will need to provide:

1) The permit number from a current year Occidental College student parking permit

2) Your Oxy ID number

3) Your license plate number 

WHERE TO CHARGE:A number of the on-campus EV charging stations are in the Employee Parking Lot. Please note, these parking spaces are reserved for Oxy staff/faculty from 8AM-5PM Monday-Friday, but are available to students during non-business hours. The Solar Array Parking Lot hosts a number of charging stations and is open to students at all times.

PARKING SPOTS: At some stations, there are multiple ports. When charging, please make sure you park in the parking spots designated for your charging port. This has been problematic in the Employee Lot. 

REPORTING MAINTENANCE ISSUES: Please report any maintenance concerns directly to ChargePoint through the Chargepoint app (Select the relevant station and choose “Report a Problem” under “Station Details”). Please note, Admissions stations may experience up to a 1 minute delay for charting to initiate. Please be patient. For any concerns about visible physical damage, please submit a maintenance request form.  

Notice of Account Disconnection: If you are ever removed from Employee parking, please attempt to re-register by following the instructions above, including a valid parking pass and Oxy email address. 

Contact Sustainability
Office of Sustainability

1600 Campus Road M-6
Los Angeles, CA 90041

[email protected]

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