Transportation
How do students get around?
Upon Arrival:
The nearest airport is the Nashville International Airport (BNA) and it is over one hour away driving from Cookeville. There is a shuttle service that you can arrange to pick you up when you arrive at the airport no matter when your flight arrives and take you to your assigned housing directly:
1. Airport Shuttle
| Upper Cumberland Shuttle Service | ucshuttles@gmail.com | 931-447-8277 | $150 one way cash or credit card, will pick up any day and time |
| Connect Upper Cumberland | https://ucpublictransit.com/connect-maps/ | 833-828-7477 | $10 one way- only runs M-F 3 times per day |
2. Taxi/Rideshare
You can also use Uber or Lyft (between $75-$150) or a Taxi (approx. $151). We do
NOT recommend taking a Greyhound bus when you first arrive because you would have
to take a taxi to get from the airport to the downtown bus station which is a dangerous
area of Nashville. Then upon arrival in Cookeville, you would have to take another
taxi to get from the bus station to the dorm.
3. Car Rental
To rent the car, international students need:
1. A valid driver’s license (many international licenses are accepted for up to 90
days in the U.S.)
2. A verified Turo account (Turo is a peer-to-peer car rental platform used for online
booking and insurance)
Availability and exact pricing for specific dates can be checked using this link: Turo Link
Pricing varies based on:1. Driver’s age
2. Protection plan selected
There are built-in discounts for 3-day, 1-week, 2-week, 3-week, and monthly rentals.
On average the pricing is :
• Short-term rentals: around $51/day
• Long-term rentals: around $37/day
(Prices exclude taxes and may vary based on driver's age and protection plan.)
After Arrival:
There are several ways to get around Cookeville
1. The local bus is FREE to Tennessee Tech students by using your Eagle card. It is easy to use and goes to most of the major places in Cookeville where students would want to go shopping, eat or hang out. Download the Passio Go app to follow the bus in real time.
2. Connect Upper Cumberland goes to Nashville during the weekdays (M-F) 3 times per day that costs only $10 one way. Many students also take the shuttle to Nashville then connect and take the Megabus and go to many other U.S. cities very inexpensively.
3. Taxi's in Cookeville are very inexpensive.
4. Greyhound bus: We also have a Greyhound bus that comes here. Here is information about the Greyhound bus. (we do not recommend using the Greyhound bus on arrival to get from the airport to Cookeville).