The Davis-Berkeley shuttle in Berkeley.
| Stops |
| (south side of Shields Library to the Berkeley West Gate) |
| Phone |
| (530)752-8287 |
| Ticket Outlets |
| Davis/Berkeley Shuttle |
| Website |
| fleet.ucdavis.edu |
A view inside the bus, 2005. UC Davis' Davis Berkeley Shuttle shuttle provides transportation between the UC Davis and UC Berkeley campuses. This service is restricted to university affiliates. Carrying students, faculty, staff, and intercampus mail it makes twice daily weekday trips and once daily Sunday trips but does not operate on university holidays.
You need to show some sort of University of California ID such as a reg card or employee identification to purchase a ticket from any of the ticket outlets. They usually don't check IDs on the bus, but you do need to sign the ticket stating that you're affiliated with the University. To ensure a seat on the shuttle make a reservation on the website; they're usually available 30 days in advance. On weekdays, you typically won't need one unless you take the early Monday/late Friday bus — even when the shuttle is fully reserved, there are almost always seats available on the departure date. Each transaction is a one-way fare, so be sure to purchase/reserve a ticket for your return trip if needed!
As of September 2022, a one way ticket now costs $16 + transaction fee and can be purchased online by credit card. In addition, smaller shuttles are being used now instead of the larger coach buses due to the budget cuts. As a result, according to Fleet Service, only 16 spots are open for reservation. 
The shuttle can save money for a trip into and past the Bay Area. Example: taking Amtrak from Davis to San Jose costs $30. Take the shuttle to Berkeley, take the downtown Berkeley BART to Millbrae ($4.10), transfer to Caltrain and arrive in San Jose ($4.25), total cost $18.10. And the savings and convenience increase when you need to get to San Francisco (~$8.65), SFO ($11.00), Redwood City, Palo Alto, Mountain View (all $12.60), and many other Peninsula locations. To find out about other commute options and a comparison of costs, visit our Transportation page.
Arrival & Departure Times
The times for arrival are very conservative, usually the trip takes approximately an hour and not one and a half hours as stated. Departure times are followed strictly.
AM Departures (weekdays)
Depart Davis 7:30am / Arrive in Berkeley 9am
Depart Berkeley 11:30am / Arrive in Davis 1pm
PM Departures (weekdays)
Depart Davis 4:30pm / Arrive in Berkeley 6:00pm
Depart Berkeley 6:30pm / Arrive in Davis 8pm
PM Departures (Sundays)
Depart Davis 3:00pm / Arrive in Berkeley 4:30pm
Depart Berkeley 5:00pm / Arrive in Davis 6:30pm
2005-02-16 02:24:03 Don't forget to get a ticket for your ride back!!!! The first time I took the shuttle as a freshman I bought a one-way ticket and nobody explained to me that I had to make another reservation on a returning shuttle. I planned to take the last shuttle back, and they happened to be booked because I didn't have a returning reservation. Getting back to Davis was not fun without a car or shuttle...well maybe it was fun. Anyway, my experience is another reason to hate TAPS... —BrianneCrabtree
2006-05-09 21:00:16 So when you buy a ticket do they actually scan your reg card like at the ARC, or do you just have to show it to them like Unitrans? —AaGg
2007-01-20 22:46:45 When you buy a ticket at the Freeborn ticket office you just show them your ID card. And Brainne, it says right on the ticket that it's only one way: its your own fault you cant read don't blame TAPS —NathanielFurniss
2007-06-04 00:46:05 agreed. it's easy-peasy when one can read. —GregoryGai
2007-06-04 03:44:53 Does anybody know if there happen to bike accommodations on the bus? —LeonardMarque
- i've never seen anyone with a bike. maybe you could take a wheel off and put it under the bus with the luggage? —JessicaRockwell
- I just called their question line (530) 752-5023 and they said that no, you can't bring a bike on the bus. —KatherineChiu, 5/19/08
2007-07-24 23:52:09 i was wondering if they scanned/swiped your reg card when you bought a ticket from davis to berkeley. do they write down your rec card id number? or just look at it? and is it true that you can purchase a ticket from someone waiting in line? do the tickets show info like: reg card number, name and such? —missxsandy
2008-07-01 14:02:25 the article states that it's cheaper to go to San Jose via SFO & BART from Berkeley. This is wrong. It's going to be cheaper (and comparable speed) to take BART to Fremont and then take a VTA express bus/shuttle to downtown San Jose. If you're trying to get somewhere else in the South Bay (like Palo Alto) then I'd reccommend trying SamTrans —briangoldner
2008-07-01 14:06:05 sometimes you can get the driver to drop you off at a place on campus if it's near where they are going next. This is especially important if you're trying to make a connection. The last shuttle from Berkeley gets in to Davis at about the same time that the last UCDMC shuttle leaves for Sacramento. You may be able to make this connection if you politely ask the driver since the UCDMC stop is near the Fleet Services terminal. —briangoldner
2008-07-07 16:44:39 The article doesn't say that taking the Caltrain is the cheapest way possible; just cheaper than Amtrak. The problem with SamTrans is that it only goes to Palo Alto, not any other South Bay locations. Getting to, say, Sunnyvale is much easier by Caltrain, and $1.75 cheaper than going to San Jose, since it's in a nearer zone. —RaghavKrishnapriyan
2009-01-13 14:10:58 You can also take the Alameda County Transit or ACTranist from Berkeley (F line) to San Francisco Bus Terminal. It costs you just 1.75 as compared to $4-$5 when taking the BART. But this will surely be a loooooooong trip to SF. If it is day time and if you have a book to read and nothing on your schedule, this is the easiest way to save money. —Praveen
2009-07-29 04:57:39 Is this service overseen or owned by ASUCD? if so, is it like a division of unitrans? Basically; who keeps the earnings? —amesguich
- Looks like it's operated by Fleet Services, which is part of the Office of Administration. So no, not ASUCD/Unitrans. —jsogul
2009-10-03 00:01:34 Worst experience!
I took the Berkeley shuttle over the summer many times, typically on fridays when it's packed and everyone from standby made it in. But I when took it for the first time during the normal school year, only 16 spots can be reserved at any one time, and the monday and friday spots filled up quick. I don't know how can fleet service not provide larger coach bus for those days when they know that there will be a demand for trips to the Bay Area. I actually had a good experience in the summer when they ran the coach buses, but after my recent experience with the change in services, I would say to avoid the shuttle unless you have a reservation. —KevinC
2010-10-22 08:19:14 The shuttle system used to be a lot more forgiving back then to folks who miss the bus...Fleet services would give you a paper ticket that would last an entire year, so if you miss a 7:30am bus, you could always standby for the more popular 2:15 bus. Nowadays, they charge you electronically and will tell you to order another reservation if you miss it. Really frustrating and I would just like to tell everyone to be on time for the bus, or else you've just lost $9.75. —JohnnyWu
2012-10-21 21:26:11 FWIW, the website says that fares have been raised to $10.35 (plus $0.65 processing fee) effective 10/1/12, but I just bought a ticket for later this week and the site only charged me the old $9 fare. —DanVillarreal
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