Tooting horn for free campus transport

It wasn't your typical Locust Walk flyerer.

No, it was a giant Penn Transit Services shuttle, dancing around and handing out T-shirts to passersby yesterday afternoon.

Following the human shuttle was a Transit employee carrying a boom-box, which blasted songs by Iggy Pop and Journey.

This spectacle signified the unveiling of Penn Transit's new mascot and campaign to raise on-campus awareness about the company's free bus and shuttle services.

The campaign, which is costing $25,000, was instituted after an online survey conducted by Penn Transit officials found that between one-third and one-half of students are unfamiliar with its programs, Transit manager Ron Ward said.

The mascot "is a fun way to get people thinking about" these programs, Penn Business Services spokeswoman Rhea Lewis said.

And the mascot-generated fun seemed contagious - at least among Transit officials.

"This is the crowning moment of my Penn Transit career," said Penn Transit employee and shuttle mascot Jimmy Kille.

"Iggy Pop makes it even better," he added.

Still, it is unclear whether students - the primary targets of this campaign - got the message.

"I didn't understand what he was doing out there," said Wharton freshman Tim Simon, who passed by the mascot during his visit.

Wharton freshman Mike Moran had a similar experience.

"I wasn't really sure what [the mascot] was doing," he said. "It didn't make me want to use Penn Transit."

In the meantime, however, the campaign will keep popping up in an effort to arouse interest in these services.

Over the next few weeks, Penn Transit officials will be holding a mascot-naming competition for students; the winner of which will receive an iPod as a prize.

The mascot will publicize transit services about twice a week all over campus for the rest of the semester, Lewis said.

It will visit the Palestra when Penn plays Temple University this month and will pop up in other surprise locations, she said.

The mascot-distributed brochures feature a map of all bus stops and bus routes, as well as bus schedules. The brochures were made specifically for this campaign, Ward said.

Despite the considerably large amount of money put aside for this campaign, Ward pointed out that he is confident that this sum of money is a "worthwhile investment."

The $25,000 allocated for this campaign covered fliers, tee-shirts, the mascot's costume and multiple renovations of transit stops around campus, he said.

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