March 1, 2007
U-CAR expanding to South Campus Center — and beyond
For years, UW employees had to go to the Motor Pool, on 25th Avenue near University Village, to get a vehicle through the U-Car program. But lately, the Motor Pool folks have been working to change that — to bring the cars closer to the people.
“The whole idea is that of making U-CAR a car-sharing program for the whole campus,” said Larissa Austin, Motor Pool program coordinator.
Joles Tahara, U-CAR program operations manager, added, “We’re not just about rental cars anymore. We’re about providing the UW community with efficient, economical and sustainable transportation through our U-CAR car-sharing program.”
Members pick up a car, drive it for University purposes only, then return it to the same spot and drop off the key. The U-CAR system keeps automatic track of vehicle usage and charges departmental budgets at the end of each month. The 2006-2007 rate for U-CAR use is $3.90 an hour, which includes all fuel and insurance costs.
Membership in U-CAR is free with a valid NetID. So far there are 138 dedicated members, but the program is always looking for more.
In the fall of 2006, U-CAR established a four-car fleet at the Central Plaza Parking Garage. There, a key box — key manager system, to be exact — awaits them with the key to a car they have reserved online.
Now, with the passage of a recent expansion proposal, the Motor Pool plans to add U-CAR to the South Campus Center, creating a four-car site at the S1 mid-level garage, scheduled to be open in late March.
Four other key manager boxes also were purchased, but the Motor Pool has not yet decided where these will go. Those faculty and staff with suggestions may contact Austin by e-mail at la0@u.washington.edu.
If it all seems a bit like Flexcar, it is based on a similar plan of paying per usage. But the people at the Motor Pool offer U-CAR as a supplement to Flexcar, not a substitute. Flexcar, U-CAR and the U-PASS bus pass each complement and complete each other.
“These options enable (members of) the campus community to leave their personal vehicle at home, to use the U-PASS to and from work, the U-CAR for business and theFlexcar for both business and personal errands,” Tahara said. “Our ultimate goal is to partner with the UW community to become the change agents for a new transportation ideology.”
Another perk to using the U-CAR program is that the “exempt” sticker they bear enables drivers to park U-CARS in any designated parking area on campus (except, of course, wheelchair and disability stalls, areas specifically designed for other departments, such as the UW Police, or “restricted” spaces.) And get this: U-CAR users are exempt from needing to pay parking meters in the City of Seattle, for the extent of a meter’s time.
One contented user of the U-CAR program is Krista Gurko, a research coordinator for the Center on Infant Mental Health and Development, who said she uses U-CARs when visiting families in Pierce County for a research project. “I ride my bike and pick up my car, drive back here, park in the loading zone, put the stuff I need for research into the car and head on out!” She said she enjoys the convenience of online registration and the ease of pick-up. “I register online, write down my code, go into the garage, type in my code, find my car and drive away. It’s that easy.”
Gurko, who uses the S1 parking lot in the South Campus Center, is pleased to hear that a key manager for U-CAR will next be added right there. “Knowing there’s going to be one by us will make our lives a lot easier,” she said.
For more information about the U-CAR program and where vehicles are available, visit online at www.washington.edu/admin/motorpool/ucar/info.html.
