March 7, 2002
Visitor bus tickets: New way to limit traffic
Driving alone and parking on campus is not the only way for departmental visitors and guests to get to the UW. With 37 Metro bus routes coming directly to campus, bus service is in many cases an easy and convenient alternative.
And starting this month, departments can take advantage of that fact by providing bus tickets for their visitors, guests and UW employees working off-site but coming to main campus for University business.
According to parking officials, the bus tickets will be sold only in booklets of 20 tickets. An introductory price of $20 runs from March 1, 2002 through Sept. 30, 2003; that’s half the full price of $40 and a savings of $120 in relation to pre-paid Department Commuter Tickets.
There is no maximum number of booklets that may be purchased, but the booklets are non-refundable. Tickets are valid for two-zone, peak-hour trips within King County on Metro buses.
Up to now, department managers have not had a transit option to give their visitors and guests. Parking officials say approximately 32,000 parking products are purchased by departments on a monthly basis. By providing a transportation alternative, a department can reduce its subsidizing parking cost.
Moreover, the campus parking supply is very limited. In some circumstances, parking officials say, parking for visitors and guests cannot be provided close to their destinations.
“Transit will be an increasingly valuable mode of transportation to the University,” said Carl Root, Parking Services Manager. “Bus tickets will provide departments an effective and oftentimes more convenient way to get their visitors and guests to campus.”
The campus is growing, Root said, and there are more visitors and guests coming here each year. “To be able to accommodate that growth successfully with a finite parking resource, we need to provide ways for people to get here besides driving alone. Bus tickets are a great way to accomplish this goal,” he said.
Departments/event coordinators are responsible for distributing bus tickets and a User Information Sheet, which provides visitors and guests with Web site information, phone numbers, and the Web address for Metro’s new Trip Planning service. For more information visit: http://washington.edu/admin/parking/arrange.html#BUS
