1 Sustainable Transportation For Smith College: An Investigation of the Campus Parking Master Plan Lauren Bachtel Smith College EVS 300 Seminar May 8, 20082TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT.................................................................................................................1 INTRODUCTION The Problem......................................................................................................1 The Campus Parking Master Plan.....................................................................2 Car Sharing Program.............................................................................3 Parking Cash-out Program....................................................................3 Parking Permit Pricing Modifications ..................................................4 Park & Ride Lot....................................................................................4 Biking Promotion Programs/Facilities and Safety...............................4 Project Objective.................................................................................. 5 METHODOLOGY Research............................................................................................................5 Interviews.........................................................................................................5 RESULTS Economic Focus for the Plan’s Programs.........................................................6 Evaluation of the Success and Failure of each Program Outlined in the Plan Car Sharing Program.............................................................................7 Parking Cash-out Program....................................................................7 Parking Permit Pricing Modifications ..................................................8 Park & Ride Lot....................................................................................9 Biking Promotion Programs/Facilities and Safety................................9 Contribute to Smith College’s Goal of Becoming Environmentally Sustainable 9 DISCUSSION Economic Focus for the Plan’s Programs.........................................................10 Evaluation of the Success and Failure of each Program Outlined in the Plan Car Sharing Program.............................................................................10 Parking Cash-out Program....................................................................11 Parking Permit Pricing Modifications ..................................................12 Park & Ride Lot....................................................................................12 Biking Promotion Programs/Facilities and Safety................................13 Recommendations Cash-out Program..................................................................................14 Parking Permit Pricing Modifications...................................................14 PVTA Support.......................................................................................15 Biking Promotion Programs/Facilities and Safety................................15 Final Thoughts...................................................................................................15 LITERATURE CITED.................................................................................................173ABSTRACT This project investigated how well the February 2007 Campus Parking Master Plan has been implemented at Smith College. The three main objectives of the project included: an investigation of why all the recommended programs in the plan were based on economic benefits, an evaluation of the success and failure of implemented programs based on how they reduced the demand for parking, and to contribute to Smith College’s goal of becoming environmentally sustainable by refining programs outlined in the plan and suggesting new ones. To conduct this investigation, I partnered with Krista Matatt. Together we conducted interviews with James Lowenthal, Chair of Smith’s Sustainability Committee, and Paul Ominsky, Director of Public Safety. We analyzed the Campus Parking Master Plan that was drafted by consultants Fuss and O’Neill. The Plan was drafted to allow for the construction of Ford Hall without having to increase the supply of parking on campus. We found that while most of the implemented programs were successful in reducing the need for more parking spaces on campus, there is definitely room for improvement. Overall, our findings indicate that while the Campus Parking Master Plan was drafted for economic reasons, it was done so with environmental sustainability in mind. Therefore it is a great starting point toward achieving sustainable transportation at Smith College. INTRODUCTION The Problem When Smith College was in the process of confirming the construction of Ford Hall, city officials told the college’s administration that 366 new parking spaces must also be constructed to accommodate for the college’s future population growth. However, the construction of Ford Hall is not intended to bring new faculty or staff to campus, rather it is meant to provide student’s with more modern engineering and science facilities. A group of faculty and staff at Smith congregated to discuss possible ways of fulfilling the Ford Hall requirements. They decided that rather than increase the supply of parking spaces, Smith should decrease the demand for parking. This idea resulted in the hiring of consultants Fuss & O’Neill to draft the Campus Parking Master Plan (the Plan) in February 2007. There were several factors that swayed the group of faculty and staff at Smith to promote sustainable transportation and decrease the demand for parking instead of4increase the supply. Sustainable transportation is highly known at Smith, but it is not highly practiced. In 2007, 85.4% of Smith commuters drove alone, 7% walked, 3.7% carpooled, 3% rode bikes, and the rest rode the bus (Fuss and O’Neill 2007). Even though the city officials told the college to add addition parking for Ford Hall, they are not actually in favor of constructing more parking spaces. The demand was made simply to address city-parking problems. The city has shown that it is flexible and willing to work with Smith College to address parking more “creatively, economically, and responsibly” (Fuss and O’Neill