The A.S. Council’s safe ride program, Triton Taxi, has expanded to serve the Gaslamp district, an area in downtown San Diego famous for its bars and clubs.

Triton Taxi also serves La Jolla, Pacific Beach, Clairemont, University City, Mission Bay and Mira Mesa.

Triton Taxi, like San Diego State University’s safe ride program, contracts Cloud 9 Shuttles, which provides vans and dispatch services. SDSU’s program already served the Gaslamp district, and Triton Taxi was able to expand without incurring any additional cost to the A.S. Council or to students.

“”This expansion is the first of several planned expansions of the Triton Taxi program,”” said A.S. Commissioner of Services and Enterprises Colin Parent. “”What’s so great about this … is that because Cloud 9 already services the Gaslamp District, we can expand without having to front any setup costs.””

The Gaslamp was, according to Parent, one of the two most requested areas for expansion, along with the U.S.-Mexican border. Service may later expand to the border.

“”Myself and the rest of the Unity slate campaigned on expanding Triton Taxi in some form or another to the border,”” Parent said. “”We’ve already had preliminary discussion with Cloud 9 and the Student Safety Awareness Program to set up a program that’s safe and useful for students of UCSD.””

The Gaslamp, because of its large bar culture, tends to be a destination of the 21-and-up crowd. The area hosts annual events like Mardi Gras and Street Scene, which occurred Sept. 7 to 9 this year. It is famous for bars like Ole Madrid, Off Broadway and The Onyx Room.

“”Expanding Triton Taxi into the downtown area increases its appeal and accessibility to older, off-campus and commuting students,”” said A.S. President Jeff Dodge.

The Triton Taxi program was founded in 1999 to provide students a way to avoid unsafe situations, such as walking home alone, car trouble, parties, dates and particularly drunk driving.

“”Triton Taxi was founded in order to give students a safe way to get home and escape any uncomfortable situation,”” said Triton Taxi founder and former A.S. Commissioner of Services and Enterprises Matt Conroy. “”In addition to increasing student safety, this program serves the community by transporting students who might otherwise drive home intoxicated.””

Triton Taxi’s operating hours remain the same: Friday and Saturday nights, 11 p.m. to 3 a.m.

Parent said A.S. Council is looking into expanding service times as well.

“”One of the possibilities of expanding service to the border would include expanding it to include Wednesday night service as well,”” Parent said. “”However, such an expansion would cost more money. We would have to find additional funding for the program. That funding could come from the Senate or from outside sponsors.””

The focus remains on expanding the service area.

“”Right now hours are less of a priority than area of service, but that’s only because of what the demand has been,”” Parent said. “”In a perfect world, we’d expand both. It really depends on what funds are available and how much of a priority this program is in the minds of the A.S. Senate.””

All UCSD undergraduates can use Triton Taxi. They must, however, sign a waiver stating that they understand their responsibilities for using the service and put an orange Triton Taxi sticker on their UCSD ID cards. Waivers and stickers are available in the Student Leadership Chambers on the third floor of the Price Center, or at booths often stationed on Library Walk or at the colleges.