Locale | Raleigh, North Carolina |
---|---|
Service type | bus service |
Routes | 11 |
Fleet | New Flyer Xcelsior XD40 |
Operator | Transdev |
Website | NCSU Wolfline |
The Wolfline is an area bus service serving the students, staff, faculty, and general public on and around North Carolina State University's campus in Raleigh, North Carolina. As of Fall 2017, Wolfline is operated by Transdev,[1] after being operated by First Transit between 2007 and 2017,[2] under contract with NC State's Transportation department. The Wolfline was the first mass transit organization in the state to exclusively use 'clean' diesel engines.[3] Wolfline access is unrestricted to the public and is a zero-fare service.[4] The preceding contractor was Veolia Transport. The Wolfline began operating in August 1980 with one route.[5]
Currently, the Wolfline operates 11 routes[6] on and between Main, Centennial, and the Veterinary School campuses. These routes often coincide with those operated by GoRaleigh and GoTriangle, facilitating movement about Raleigh, Cary, and the entire Research Triangle by bus.
Of the 11 campus-area routes, 10 run on weekdays from 7:00am to 10:00pm or 1:00am, depending on the route. Three of the ten routes (30, 41, and 52) operate on weekends. One route, the RS Shuttle, is a special route only run on days after university breaks. Over the summer, regular service is roughly cut in half. During student breaks, the Wolfline runs limited service routes, focused on moving faculty and staff around. The Wolfline does not run on federal holidays.[7]
After the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, Wolfline switched its routes significantly, changing its numbering to only include two digit route numbers, though many of the new routes resemble the pre-pandemic routes.
Transdev's operations are scheduled to begin in time for the fall 2017 semester to accommodate the acquisition period of the new fleet.
Wolfline service is operated by a private contractor, First Transit. The contract was originally signed for the 2007-12 period; it was renewed for another five years for 2012-17.