Terry Waltz, a service employee with the Centre Area
Transportation Authority, helps to make one of the Loop
buses look its best before being put into service.
Photo: Greg Grieco
By Lisa M. Rosellini
Public Information
Just hop on the bus, Gus.
By the end of the month, it should be as easy as that to get around the University Park campus, say University transportation officials who hope employees begin using the new no-fare bus service that is part of Penn State's plan to lessen traffic on campus.
The no-fare bus service, provided through an agreement with the Centre Area Transportation Authority, kicks off Sunday, Aug. 22, and is available to anyone riding the Campus or Town Loops. The loops cover the areas from Beaver to Park avenues and from Porter Road to Atherton Street. The two-route loop system provides frequent repeated service around campus and downtown during fall and spring semesters.
The no-fare bus service is only one part of Penn State's new Transportation Demand Management plan -- a strategy that gives high priority to bicycles and pedestrians and encourages alternative transportation, like carpooling and public transportation. Known as TDM, the plan is being instituted to provide better parking and transportation for faculty, staff and students, while alleviating some of the traffic congestion in and around campus and lessening environmental pollutants.
"An important element for planning the future of the University Park campus and what it will look like in the years to come, is transportation. Providing viable options for people is key to the success of any plan and I think this plan attempts to cover the needs of travelers and the University," said Teresa Davis, director of transportation services. "The most essential component of this plan is busing. By offering this alternative, we hope to significantly reduce the number of single-occupant vehicles on campus and make it safer for pedestrians."
Davis said although all of the components of the plan are not yet in place, the public transportation aspect is ready to be put to the test, as well as the carpooling option known as the Rideshare Program with its safety net of a "guaranteed ride home."
"We would like everyone to give it a try," Davis said. "We know it is going to be some time before it catches on. Habits are hard to break and the untested waters make people a bit reluctant. But this works in other regions and it can work here."
The following areas make up the TDM plan:
The no-fare service is available to anyone riding in the designated area. Riders do not need a pass and because an extra 10,000 hours of transit service was added to the two-loop system, the wait for a bus during peak hours will be less than five minutes between buses. Additional bus shelters will be added along the loop route and the buses will run from 7 a.m. to 12:30 a.m. Sunday through Thursday; and from 7 a.m. to 3 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.
In addition, a discounted monthly transit pass will be offered to University employees to use on CATA's regional Centre Line. The pass, $29 a month for the 1999-2000 academic year, if offered for purchase through payroll deduction and is subject to the same pretax benefit as the parking permits. It also is discounted 28 percent over the normal monthly pass rate.
The Rideshare Program, to be administered by CATA, will help bring together carpoolers by matching their needs. CATA will register participants and each participant will receive a list of individuals who have similar commutes and travel schedules. Participants make their own personal arrangements. If you sign up for the Rideshare Program, you are not obligated to participate. In addition, carpool members may register each of their vehicles on one transferable parking permit and each rideshare participant will receive three, one-day parking permits at no charge each fiscal year to cover the occasional need to drive independently.
The Guaranteed Ride Home (GRH) is just that -- a ride for carpoolers who may need a ride because of a personal emergency or an emergency situation which makes their driver unavailable for the ride home. GRH is a critical element of the Rideshare Program that provides a "free" ride home or to a required destination either through a rental car or a taxi service.
For more information on either of these programs, contact CATA at (814) 238-2282.
The parking aspect of the TDM plan is not yet complete, according to Davis, who said the University will move toward an area parking concept -- or zone concept -- hopefully by spring that allows permit holders to have more choices. Currently, parking permit holders are assigned to a designated lot. Under the new plan, permit holders will be able to choose an area that contains several lots rather than being forced into one specific lot. Each zone will include a parking deck or a large surface lot or both, to ensure a parking location near the traveler's destination. In addition, about two lots in each area will be designated as "reserved" for that specific area -- 24 hours a day, seven days a week -- to aid permit holders who want to work nights and weekends.
The parking portion of the plan also calls for the elimination of overselling the permits in reserved areas, which is the current practice. More permits are currently issued than there are available spaces in certain lots. Now, no more than 100 percent assignment rate will be maintained to guarantee a space for permit holders. In addition, parking enforcement will be increased and departments will be required to purchase and display a permit on department vehicles. Travelers who park on the outskirts of campus and use the bus to arrive at work will be rewarded with lower monthly parking fees.
Existing parking decks on campus also are slated for expansion, providing more parking opportunities for employees as well as visitors.
The University is developing 12.5 miles of bike paths to tie in with existing regional bike trails. Currently an informal network of bike paths exists on campus, but the new cycling initiative isn't expected to be introduced until fall 2000. Davis said that by next year, the bicycle portion of the plan should be ready to go and the University will put in place 100 new bicycle lockers at various locations across campus.
"These concepts -- which seem unfamiliar to us right now -- do work," Davis said. "The most valuable part of the entire TDM process has been the input of faculty, staff, students and visitors. Many took the time to contact us with their concerns or support for this project and we have been able to see the different aspects of transportation from many viewpoints. It is because of this input that I believe the TDM plan will be a success."
For more up-to-date information on TDM, visit the Web at http://www.cac.psu.edu/dept/parking/.