University Transportation Survey: Transportation in University Communities

Universities and transit agencies across the United States have been finding innovative ways of providing and financing mobility services on and around university campuses. Many transit agencies are providing substantially more service and moving substantially more riders than their counterparts in nonuniversity environments. Determining what types of relationships exist between transit performance and university policies or practices is the research premise. To that end, the purpose is to document the types of transportation policies, demographics, and land use characteristics that exist on university campuses, and to examine the relationship between transit performance, land use on university campuses, types of university communities, university transportation and parking policies, and student demographics. These characteristics of university transportation systems were examined through demographic data and a mailed questionnaire. The questionnaire was sent to 48 universities and transit agencies across the United States, with 23 responding with enough valid data and information to be included in the study. It has been demonstrated in a significant number of university communities across the country that transit performance is enhanced dramatically by certain fare policies. However, that enhancement differs from one community to the next. It is believed that the answer to maximizing transit performance can be found in a combination of factors and that the optimum mix can be identified empirically.