SUBJECT:  UCSD Transportation and Parking, 2001-2006

Dear Members of the UCSD Community:

The attached Executive Summary was included in a recent report produced by the Transportation Policy Committee chaired by Professor Alain J-J Cohen. Given increasing enrollments and commensurate growth in faculty, staff, and visitors that UCSD will experience over the next few years, we will need to take a number of steps to maintain appropriate access to the campus. Consequently, this committee has provided a set of recommendations to ensure a sufficient parking supply, increase the scope of our transportation options, and preserve the financial integrity of the transportation and parking system. Knowing that parking and parking permit fees are of interest to many in our community, I believe that this committee's analysis kept at the forefront of its list of considerations the importance of keeping transportation and parking costs as affordable as possible.

Consultation with the student, faculty, and staff representatives who comprise the Transportation Policy Committee was the first step in this planning process. Equally important is informing the larger campus community and receiving, evaluating, and, when appropriate, adopting suggestions as planning progresses. To that end, please feel free to comment on this report, which can be found at http://planning.ucsd.edu/tpc/index.html, and communicate your questions, comments, and suggestions directly to the Transportation Policy Committee (tpc@ucsd.edu) by Friday, December 14, 2001.

                                                Sincerely,

                                                Steven W. Relyea
                                                Vice Chancellor - Business Affairs

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UCSD Transportation and Parking, 2001 - 2006

Executive Summary

Demographics and Parking

*UCSD's total population is projected to increase by 6,500 (21 %), from 31,500 in 2000-2001 to 38,000 in 2005-06.

*As of 2000-01, the supply of 14,144 main campus permit and metered parking spaces was more than adequate, but projected growth will create additional demand. Also, about 1,600 spaces will be displaced by the construction of new facilities, primarily on North Campus.

Methodology and Assumptions

In June 2000, the UCSD Transportation Policy Committee (TPC) initiated a review of short and long term transportation and parking needs and related policies. Nelson\Nygaard Consulting Associates, as well as the UCSD offices of Analytical Studies and Space Planning, Physical Planning, and Transportation and Parking Services, provided the TPC data, analyses, and assessments including population projections, policy and financial analyses, parking need assessments, and comparisons with other campuses. Due to the many uncertainties regarding long term growth assumptions (e.g., population growth, capital development, elasticity of demand, local and state economy, and expansion of public transportation access), the TPC decided to focus on UCSD's short term, five year (2001 - 2006) transportation and parking needs, a time frame for which projections of parking system supply and demand characteristics are relatively reliable.

Financial analyses were prepared to include a baseline condition (i.e., a model which assumed no new parking construction or expansion of transportation alternatives) as well as four models representing two variables:

*whether to expand alternative transportation programs, and

*whether to implement policy restrictions affecting parking options for freshmen living in campus housing.

A target ratio of .41 parking spaces per capita was assumed. This parameter represents the target parking ratio that UCSD has maintained over the past ten years. UCSD's supply goal is to achieve 90% occupancy at peak periods, consistent with industry standards.

Recommendations

For the five-year time frame covered by this report, the TPC recommends that UCSD address traffic, parking, access, and environmental/quality of life needs and issues through a multifaceted transportation demand management strategy:

*Begin planning two new parking structures to be occupied by no later than 2004-05 and 2006-07 respectively.

*Expand UCSD operated shuttle programs, including a new shuttle, operating into the late night hours circulating in the high density areas of north University City and an inter-campus shuttle connecting the SIO area, West Campus, the School of Medicine, the Medical Center La Jolla (MCLJ), and Mesa Housing.

*Expand alternative transportation programs (e.g., carpooling, vanpooling, alternative work schedules) to reduce single-occupancy vehicle trips during peak traffic and parking hours.

*Work with the public agencies responsible for mass transit operations to expand the scope of services provided for UCSD commuters, including the provision of light rail transit (trolley) services.

*Expand bicycle network facilities, including bicycle lanes on Gilman Drive, improve north-south and east-west bike connections, and install additional bike racks.

*Continue to operate a consolidated General Campus and Medical Center parking system. Further financial reviews will be undertaken to confirm the continued viability of the consolidation.

*Continue to operate visitor and patient parking at the Medical Centers as self-supporting programs, without subsidy by parking permit holders.

*Regularly monitor the need for further additional parking, further expansion of alternative transportation programs, and further policy restrictions in light of campus population changes, facilities developments (e.g., projects that displace surface parking facilities, such as new student housing on the North Campus) and annually reevaluate options to ensure sufficient parking capacity and campus access.

*Implement policy changes that will restrict parking for resident freshman beginning in 2003-04. This will entail a restructuring of the existing UCSD parking permit system.

Costs and Permit Fees Associated with Implementation of Recommendations

As of July 1, 2001, UCSD's monthly parking permit fees were set at $41 - Student, $55 - Staff, $64 - Faculty, and $120 - Reserved. If UCSD decides to accept the recommendations in this report (to construct two new parking structures, expand alternative transportation programs, restrict resident freshman parking, and improve bicycle transportation) between 2001-02 and 2005-06, monthly parking permit fees in 2005-06 could increase by about:

$15 for S (student) permits, from $41 to $56.

$21 for B (staff and graduate student) permits, from $55 to $76.

$24 for A (faculty) permits, from $64 to $88.

$45 for R (reserved) permits, from $120 to $165.

The committee is also considering other revenue neutral, permit fee structures that would give greater weight to convenience of parking realized as a function of permit type.

Note that UCSD implemented a pre-tax transportation program on September 1, 1998. This program, which reflected changes in Federal tax laws, resulted in tax savings for many UCSD employees. Under this pre-tax program, payroll deductions for parking have not been subject to withholding for Federal income taxes and FICA taxes (i.e., Social Security and Medicare).