On Nov. 4, the Princeton Club Curling president Lara Katz ’24 emailed the undergraduate student body in need of a van driver: “We will rent a car and provide you food, lodging, and eternal friendship. you can curl if you like but not necessary, we do have a full team of curlers just no van-certified drivers lol. if you are our van-certified driver, we won’t have to take a Greyhound bus and Uber all weekend :)"
Several recent emails sent to Hoagie Mail suggest there’s a demand for van-certified drivers. With no van certification exams for a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, student organizations have had difficulty traveling to competitions and events.
The Curling Club, which took home the silver medal at the USA Curl College National Championship, is one of several groups to request van-certified drivers from the community, offering incentives to the tune of Katz’s pledge of taking drivers “out for ice cream or coffee or broccoli or even dinner if it’s not too $$.”
Since Jan. 1, 2023, the Risk Management office has received 525 applications for driver authorization, with 75 percent of these for driving vans. Risk Management only began tracking requests for different vehicle types in 2023.
“From Spring of 2020 through Spring of 2021, Risk Management did not authorize any new drivers,” Director of Risk Management Karen Bradley wrote in an email to the Daily Princetonian.
The 196 undergraduates applying for van certification this year account for about four percent of all undergraduate students.
An approved van driver is required to drive all University-owned vans as well as any vehicles rented by specific clubs and organizations. For University Club Sports, CampusRec provides Enterprise CarShare vehicles for transportation to or from off-campus practices and competitions, but will only rent vehicles for those with van certifications.
In an email sent to Club Sport officers on Aug. 18, Assistant Director of Campus Recreation for Sport Clubs and Summer Camp Ro Ramirez wrote, “Registering as an approved driver, passing the online test, and completing your behind-the-wheel test are all requirements for transporting yourself and others using University approved vehicles.”
Club Curling was bringing teams of new members to Rochester, N.Y. and Boston, Mass.
“We did have a person in that group going to Rochester, a freshman, who was interested and willing to get van-certified,” Katz wrote in an email to the ‘Prince.’ “He signed up to take the test and for whatever reason couldn’t get an appointment until the last day of the trip. That’s why I sent the email.”
Three individuals responded to the email but ultimately backed out for different reasons. Two Curling members going to Boston secured appointments and received their van certifications before the competition. Club Curling did not succeed in finding a driver for Rochester.
On Nov. 6, the Princeton Debate Panel sent a similar email to undergraduate students seeking a van-certified driver, also providing accommodations in exchange for transportation, writing, “If you’re van-certified, please consider joining the debate team on a road trip to Brown University this weekend! We have a van and will be happy to pay for your accommodations, meals, etc.”
An email sent to the Princeton University Climbing Team on Nov. 26 by team captain Anna Neznamova ’25 included a form to sign up for an upcoming competition. The final question on the form asked, “Are you van certified?” with three answer choices below: “Yes,” “No,” and “No, but I will do the super short training ASAP.”
Neznamova stressed the importance of having many van-certified team members.
“We’re limited by the amount of people who can drive vans,” she said. “I think right now on our team, we really only have three people that are van-certified… So, it’s very important for us to get more people to be certified.” Neznamova said that an increase in team attendance at competitions allows for more members to become involved in the sport and include more of the team.
To become a van-certified driver, students and faculty or staff must be in possession of a permanent driver’s license issued by a U.S. state or territory or Canadian province. No licenses from other countries are acceptable.
According to Risk Management, “If you have a history of moving violations or driving under the influence, it is possible that you will not receive authorization to operate a University vehicle.” A motor vehicle record must also not show that one has had “six or more traffic violation points; a chargeable accident within the past 24 months; or a conviction for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs or other major violations.”
Once initially approved by Risk Management, undergraduates must pass an online test by scoring 70 or more. For vans and cars, undergraduate students must then schedule an additional behind-the-wheel exam with the Department of Public Safety. This exam occurs in a large van in a course located in an off-campus parking lot. The exam requires weaving between cones, both forwards and backwards, as well as pulling into and reversing into a tight parking space and parallel parking.
“Many of the students who are requesting authorization to drive are from out of state and not used to the rules and ways of New Jersey roads (i.e. circles and jug handles),” Bradley wrote. “Many [applicants] have only been driving for a short period of time — some less than a year — or did not drive frequently at home. Some are, unfortunately, pressured into volunteering to drive even though they are uncomfortable doing so.”
As the vehicles used by many clubs for transportation are often different and larger than those students drive at home, Risk Management believes a series of exams that allow drivers to practice driving in a controlled environment is beneficial.
“Driving a van is a very different experience than driving a regular sedan, not only due to the size difference,” Bradley wrote. “The center of gravity is different. There is a potential for the vehicle to tip over if a turn is taken too quickly or sharply. Backing the vehicle up should be done with a spotter as opposed to with just the driver’s eyes… Students are encouraged to ask [their experienced instructor from the Department of Public Safety] questions and become truly comfortable with the different experience during the session.”
Neznamova had a “fun” experience taking her exam. “We did some training by going around obstacles and then driving backwards,” she said. “I feel like they [Public Safety] taught me other driving skills that I didn't know before.”
The opportunity for free ice cream or broccoli from the Curling Club may be in the past, as Katz wrote: “Looking at our calendar for the rest of the year, we've got at least one van-certified driver signed up for every event, so we shouldn't have anything to worry about, it was just a struggle for our newbie weekend.”
Andrew Bosworth is an assistant Data editor for the ‘Prince.’
Please send any corrections to corrections[at]dailyprincetonian.com.
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