CatawbaGO: How Catawba College Built a Model Campus Transit Program

When people think of campus transit programs, they picture large state universities with huge enrollments and fleets of buses. Catawba College, a small private liberal arts institution in Salisbury, North Carolina, is rewriting that assumption. CatawbaGO, the college's electric transit program built in partnership with Slidr, has become a model for how small colleges can deliver professional, technology-enabled transportation that serves both campus and community.

The Starting Point: A Real Problem

Catawba College sits in Salisbury, a small city in Rowan County, northeast of Charlotte. The campus is walkable internally, but the surrounding community, where students need to go for groceries, dining, healthcare, and recreation, is spread across a geography that is difficult to navigate without a car.

A significant portion of Catawba's student body comes from outside the immediate region. Many do not bring cars to campus. Those without vehicles relied on friends, occasional rideshare services at considerable per-trip cost, or simply stayed on campus. As the college's administration recognized, this limitation affected student satisfaction, retention, and the overall college experience.

Previous solutions had been informal and inconsistent: a van that ran occasionally, an informal carpool board, and a general expectation that students would figure it out. The college wanted something better, something that felt professional, was reliable, and aligned with Catawba's institutional commitment to sustainability and innovation.

Designing the Program

Slidr worked with Catawba's administration and student government to design CatawbaGO from the ground up. The process began with a demand analysis that mapped where students actually need to go and when. The top destinations were:

• Downtown Salisbury (dining, coffee shops, entertainment)
• Grocery and retail corridors along Jake Alexander Boulevard
• Medical facilities including Novant Health Rowan Medical Center
• Athletic and recreation facilities on the campus perimeter
• Off-campus housing clusters a short drive from campus

Based on this analysis, CatawbaGO was designed as an on-demand service within a defined service zone that covers the campus and the surrounding community. Riders request a ride in the app when they need one, or schedule a ride ahead of time.

The Fleet and Technology

CatawbaGO launched in August 2025 with one Ford E-Transit and one VW ID. Buzz and now runs two VW ID. Buzz vehicles, both full-size electric vans. The vehicles are fully enclosed, climate-controlled, and branded with CatawbaGO and Catawba College identity. The all-electric fleet produces zero tailpipe emissions, aligning with the college's sustainability mission.

The technology platform includes a dedicated CatawbaGO rider app available on iOS and Android. The app provides real-time vehicle tracking, estimated arrival times, on-demand ride requests, and rides scheduled ahead. Slidr provides the college with a ridership dashboard and regular reporting.

Ridership

From Aug 20, 2025 to Sep 30, 2026, CatawbaGO completed 13,696 rides and carried 18,164 passengers (as of September 2026).

Small colleges have an advantage here. Word of mouth travels quickly in a tight-knit campus community, and a ride to the places students actually want to go is an easy benefit to explain.

Community Impact in Salisbury

One of CatawbaGO's most significant outcomes is its impact on the broader Salisbury community. As the Biltmore Beacon reported, the service provides free point-to-point rides that connect students to downtown businesses.

PluginNC's coverage highlighted the "electric rideshare buzz" generated by CatawbaGO, noting that the program has raised awareness of electric vehicle technology in a community that had limited prior exposure. The visible, branded electric vehicles operating daily through downtown Salisbury serve as a rolling demonstration of practical EV deployment.

Catawba College's own communications have featured CatawbaGO prominently, highlighting the program as evidence of the institution's commitment to student experience and sustainability. The service has become a talking point in admissions conversations, with prospective students and families noting the availability of electric transit as a meaningful campus amenity.

The Financial Model

Catawba College funds CatawbaGO. The college views the investment through the lens of student retention and satisfaction rather than transportation cost alone.

For context, losing a single student to transfer costs a small college a significant amount in lost tuition and fees. If CatawbaGO contributes to retaining even a handful of students who might otherwise transfer due to quality-of-life concerns, the program's ROI is strongly positive.

Lessons for Other Small Colleges

CatawbaGO offers a replicable model for smaller colleges that want to add transit without building a full transportation department:

• Right-size from day one. A small fleet serving a focused service zone outperforms an overambitious program that spreads resources thin. CatawbaGO started with a service zone and hours that matched actual demand, not aspirational demand.
• Partner, do not build. Catawba did not hire drivers, buy vehicles, or develop software. They partnered with Slidr to get a turnkey program that their staff manages at the oversight level, not the operational level.
• Connect campus to community. The decision to extend service beyond campus boundaries into downtown Salisbury was deliberate and essential. It made CatawbaGO a community connector as well as a campus service, multiplying its value.
• Leverage the sustainability angle. For colleges with environmental commitments, an electric transit program is a visible, daily demonstration of those values. It gives the sustainability office a tangible story to tell.

CatawbaGO proves that campus transit is not a function of institutional size. It is a function of institutional will. Catawba College had the vision, and Slidr had the platform to make it real.