getting around Western Mass as a student

MADad
Sun, 14 Jul 2019 03:29:01 +0000

The 4 colleges not named “Smith” all lie along Route 116, so there is a free PVTA bus that loops between the 4 of them, about every 20 minutes (I believe, don’t hold me to that timetable). Smith, being on the other side of the river, takes a bit longer. Students may have to change buses at UMass to get to Smith. However, since UMass is sort of like the hub of the system, one can get a bus from there to just about anywhere (Boston, NYC, Bradley Airport, etc).

WARNING: D graduated from Mt Holyoke 6 yrs ago, so my info may not be 100% current. She used the free bus to take courses at UMass and Hampshire. Avoided Smith because of the longer ride. Avoided Amherst because the vibe there is less than welcoming for consortium students.