A Special Report: Sustainable Transportation at WWU

Alexander (A.J.) Garcia has been the Associated Students Alternative Transportation Coordinator since June 2008. He is a junior majoring in politics/philosophy/economics and is originally from Spokane. He may be reached at AS.Transportation@wwu.edu.

At the heart of sustainability efforts at Western Washington University is student involvement and collaboration with university administration. Also key are partnerships with others in the university, as well as various groups promoting or improving sustainable transportation in Bellingham and Whatcom County

In the spring of 2007, the students of Western approved a universal student alternative transportation fee by an overwhelming margin. Of the Western students who voted, 80.4 percent voted in approval. The fee was the culmination of years of work done by many interested parties including students, university staff, and other organizations such as the Whatcom Transportation Authority (WTA).

The fee provides a WTA Viking Xpress bus pass to each eligible student, which is valid on every WTA route in the system. The fee is charged to all students taking six or more credits on campus, and students taking under six credits may opt-in and receive a bus pass.

The fee also funds several staff positions to administer the various elements of the program, as well as to serve as a resource for students. The program was given the moniker of “Western Student Transportation” and went into effect in conjunction with the fee in the fall of 2007.

The fee is up for renewal in the spring of 2012. It is currently set at $25 per quarter, and may be raised a maximum of 5 percent each year without a student vote. The fee also pays for the Western Late Night Shuttle.

The Late Night Shuttle consists of two routes that run every 30 minutes after WTA transit service stops, allowing students to get around safely and conveniently until 3 A.M., seven days a week. The Shuttle serves Western’s campus, downtown, Bill McDonald Parkway and Lincoln Creek and is open to all students.

As noted, the program was approved and is funded entirely by students. As a result, there are various ways in which students provide oversight and input into how the program is run and how student funds are spent.

The fee funds a student position of the Associated Students (AS) titled the Alternative Transportation Coordinator, whose purpose is to find ways to improve and increase use of the programs funded by the fee as well as to serve as a resource for students. This position provides a student voice in the day-to-day operations of Western Student Transportation.

The funds paid by students are overseen by an Alternative Transportation Fee Committee, composed of a majority of students (the AS VP for Governmental Affairs, the AS VP for Student Life, the AS Alternative Transportation Coordinator, and a student at large), as well as members of the University Administration from Business and Financial Affairs, the Transportation Office, and the Office of Parking and Public Safety. This direct student and administration collaboration has been very effective in making decisions and creating positive relationships between students and administrators.

Student input is also heard through the Associated Students Transportation Advisory Committee (ASTAC), which meets regularly to discuss and find solutions to various transportation issues on Western’s campus. The AS Board of Directors has oversight over the fee and the program and is given a report on the state of the program and fee annually.

Sustainability in transportation efforts at Western has seen marked progress. WTA ridership has significantly increased over the past several years, a combination of increased awareness of transit options, greatly improved transit to Western and to the greater Bellingham community, as well as the introduction of the fee and universal bus pass.

WTA ridership on Western routes has grown by such an amount that most buses heading to or from campus during the morning and afternoon peaks are standing room only. Due to overloading on buses during 2007 and 2008 that left students behind at bus stops, WTA has continued to add extra buses to routes going to and from Western when they are needed the most. As a result of WTA’s efforts, the occasions where students are left at bus stops because a bus is too full to let them on has dramatically diminished.

One very important advantage that comes with the WTA bus pass is the ability to travel inexpensively around the region. Western students, using their bus pass, can travel to Seattle or Bellevue on the weekdays for as little as $4.50, and to Everett for as little as $2.00. Not only is this very important for the many students who commute to Western from Snohomish and Skagit counties every day, but it is also important for the many students who live in Seattle and surrounding cities. This enables students to go home for the weekend or on breaks without needing a car and without breaking the bank. Recent improvements in scheduling made by Skagit Transit (which operates Route 90X between Everett and Mount Vernon, and with WTA jointly operates Route 80X between Bellingham and Mount Vernon), have made this method of travel even more viable for students and the general public.

A recent agreement negotiated between Western and WTA allows increases in the amount the program will pay to WTA over the next several years. This ensures the program will continue to be viable until it is up for renewal in 2012.

Other positive steps have also been taken. The university approved work on combining the Western ID Card and the Viking Xpress Bus Pass earlier this fall after many years of effort by students and staff. Testing the combined card will continue through this year, and Western plans on switching the bus pass to the Western Card in late 2010.

This will make it even more convenient to use transit, and will do away with having a separate card for the bus. As an added bonus, it is expected to dramatically reduce the number of lost bus passes, which has been a pressing issue since the program started, and will continue to be an issue this academic year.

Late Night Shuttle ridership has also continued to grow over the past several years, with weekends being especially popular. The shuttle provided more than 20,000 rides in its first year, and ridership has steadily increased ever since.

More bike racks have been added to Western’s campus in recent years, and a change in the Washington Administrative Code last summer clarified walk-zones on campus, making it easier to bike at Western. Additionally, growing awareness of sustainability issues and the connection between transportation choices and sustainability have helped to foster a “culture of sustainability” and use of alternative modes of transportation on campus.

Despite the great strides that have been made in recent years in increasing the use of alternative modes of transportation, especially public transit, there is still much work to be done. One of the goals of Western Student Transportation is to enable every student at Western to have a full college experience without needing a car. There are still several areas where that statement hasn’t been fully realized, and where progress needs to be made.

In terms of WTA service to Western, both Western Student Transportation and WTA staff need to continue to work diligently to maintain and increase ridership. Ridership still has the potential to increase, especially to travel to various destinations off campus, such as Bellis Fair Mall, downtown, and the Fairhaven district. Students will continue to use transit to get to and from campus if it remains a convenient option.

While WTA has done an excellent job to provide additional needed transit service during the morning and afternoon peaks (in the form of “shuttle” routes), there are areas that could still be better served by transit.

One area that has the ridership to justify additional transit service perhaps more than any other route service campus is the Happy Valley neighborhood. Students have been asking for years to have Route 14 to run every 15 minutes (like WTA’s GO Lines) and have increased weekend or evening service. The Happy Valley neighborhood has traditionally housed many students, and it is reasonable to expect that this trend will continue in the future.

Students have also desired additional service improvements to WTA’s service around Western, such as is increased frequency during nights and weekends and extended hours during the evening. Route 108 (which leaves downtown and serves Samish Way and Western via Bill McDonald Parkway) and Route 105 (which serves Fairhaven, 32nd Street, Bill McDonald Parkway, Western, and downtown) currently operate only every hour on their regular routes.

In September 2008, additional service was added in the peak morning and afternoon times to increase the frequency of service up to every 30 minutes. Students would greatly benefit from both of these routes running every 30 minutes during weekdays, and this increased frequency on Route 105 would also better serve the Fairhaven district. The Samish Way area would benefit from a bus every 30 minutes along Route 108, as this would complement Route 107, which currently runs every 30 minutes in the opposite direction.

As fewer and fewer students bring cars to school, as the Viking Xpress Bus Pass becomes more popular, and as the size of Western’s student body gradually grows over the years, WTA will expect increasing demand for more transit service from students.

Meeting this demand may be more difficult than in past years as Western continues to grow, said Rick Nicholson, director of service development at WTA.

“As use of WTA grows by the campus community, it is a challenge for WTA to react quickly. We have multiple countywide demands for our service at any given time and limitations as far as buses, drivers and financial resources go,” Nicholson said. “How to be nimble given constantly changing ridership patterns at WWU is an ongoing issue for WTA. I think we’ve done an excellent job in the past in this regard, but I think it may get tougher in the future.”

One area that is currently well-served by transit is Bill McDonald Parkway, which stretches from the south end of Western’s campus to Sehome Village all the way to Lincoln Creek Transportation Center. As Western grows, WTA will most likely have to look into more costly ways to increase capacity of the popular BLUE Line routes and Route 90 “Campus Express.”

This could include the use of articulated buses (commonly seen in the Seattle region), which is one way of increasing capacity without adding additional buses. The downside to this way of increasing capacity is that articulated buses are very costly and at present they would not be needed for a significant part of the year when Western is not in session.

One of the most important elements of a sustainable transportation program is the ability for students to return to their respective hometowns without needing a car. Granted, some students will have to get a ride to their final destination, but continuing to improve regional transportation connections is a key part of sustainable transportation at Western. Increasing and improving the already popular County Connector bus routes is very important for the future, as is working toward getting more Amtrak and Greyhound service to and from Bellingham in the future.

Specific improvements that could be considered in the future as funding becomes available include adding weekend County Connector service to allow students to use public transportation to return to Western on Sundays, adding more trips to the County Connector, or combining County Connector routes, such as the Mount Vernon–Bellingham route and the Mount Vernon–Everett route, thus reducing the number of buses needed from three to two.

One missing link in the picture is that there will always be some places that students want to go to during their time at Western that aren’t served by transit and cannot be reached by the average person walking or biking. Two prime examples of this are Larrabee State Park (which is not served by transit, but could possibly be reached by biking) and the Mount Baker–Snoqualmie National Forest, home to spectacular outdoor recreation.

To solve this problem without students needing to own a car, one possibility is to have a community car share or Zipcar-esque program for Western. One problem that will need to be addressed if this is to be successful is that many Western students fall far short of age restrictions required by most car share programs.

Inevitably, there will always be some students who will have to drive to get to and from school. Morgan Holmgren, current AS Vice President for Governmental Affairs, noted that while Western continues to prioritize alternative modes of transportation, it needs to continue to maintain accessibility and affordability of traditional modes of transportation.

“[Western needs] to make sure that students who cannot utilize these options have access to campus and do not feel alienated by our efforts to promote sustainability,” Holmgren said.

In light of this reality, the Lincoln Creek Transportation Center plays a critical part in Western’s transportation network. Lincoln Creek, which is free and open to the public, allows Western students to get to and from campus in a reasonably sustainable manner even if they live outside of WTA’s service area.

As the campus expands, Lincoln Creek will only grow in importance. The significance of Lincoln Creek to future transportation needs at Western cannot be understated, and efforts should be made in the future to ensure that this remains a viable alternative for students to park and that it is continually served by excellent transportation connections.

Western’s Late Night Shuttle is a key part of enabling Western students to get around at all times of day without needing a vehicle. There are many opportunities in the future for the Late Night Shuttle and increasing late night transit service in Bellingham overall. One possibility is to consider expanding the Late Night Shuttle to serve other neighborhoods heavily populated by students. One challenge that will likely be addressed in the future will be purchasing new shuttles. This will be expensive, but it will be an important step for the long-term viability of the program.

There are other challenges on the bike and pedestrian side of the transportation spectrum. For cyclists, there is still a need for additional bike racks on campus, especially at the residence halls. Additional bike lanes on routes heading to and from campus will also be important to improve safety for commuters biking to school.

Greater priority should be given to cyclists and pedestrians in regards to transportation policy at Western. A cross-campus bicycling network should be explored. This could include cross-campus bike lanes and routes, providing a clear avenue for bike traffic while also improving the safety of both cyclists and pedestrians.

The role of bikes and pedestrians on Western’s campus will need to be clearly defined as a growing university means increasingly crowded public spaces.

For pedestrians, there is a need for increased sidewalks and crosswalks on the much-traveled streets leading toward campus. The Sehome Arboretum side of Bill McDonald Parkway is a prime example of this need for improved pedestrian infrastructure.

This is especially important in light of accessibility issues. Much work still needs to be done on Western’s campus to make Western accessible to all students regardless of disability status. Some of this work includes curb cuts along sidewalks, and the paving of pathways that currently are dirt or gravel and are thus difficult for individuals using wheelchairs or scooters to travel on.

The primary issue with improving both bike and pedestrian infrastructure is finding sources of funding. The student-paid Alternative Transportation Fee only funds transit and the Late Night Shuttle, and cannot be used for other purposes, according to the fee language approved by students. On-campus improvements have been paid for by the University, which faces increasingly tight budgets and scarce resources. Off-campus improvements fare no better, as potential projects are hampered by budget constraints at both the city of Bellingham and Western.

There is inevitably some tension between Western’s efforts and the greater community at large. WTA is faced with the prospect of balancing the increasing needs of Western’s students (especially as ridership continues to increase) with the increasing needs of the greater Bellingham community and the needs of more rural Whatcom County residents.

While Western students know that the W in WTA stands for “Whatcom” and not “Western,” expectations for WTA service continue to increase as WTA service improves. When WTA meets the expectations of riders, the bar is subsequently raised not only at Western, but throughout Whatcom County. The prospect of service reductions has the potential to be a dramatic step backward away from the progress that has been made.

Perhaps the most glaring example of this tension between Western and Bellingham is the requirement that Western have several thousand parking spaces available on campus and at the Lincoln Creek Transportation Center. Western Washington University’s Institutional Master Plan, created with and adopted by the City of Bellingham in 2001, states that “the minimum parking requirement for Western Washington University shall be 3,400 spaces.”

This requirement, which was based on a 1998 survey that found that 27 percent of university commuters traveled to campus in single occupancy vehicles, continues to be in effect today. This requirement can be reduced by up to 30 percent if it is shown that there has been an increase in the use of alternative transportation methods.

If this requirement continues to be in effect as the use of alternative modes of transportation increases, an abundance of parking could serve as a detriment to any further progress in making Western a more sustainable university.

Despite this prospect, options such as parking and WTA service can serve as opportunities for Western, students, and the greater community at large to continue to build upon past successful efforts.

Western’s 13,000 or more students have a significant impact on the greater Bellingham community, and issues of sustainability and transportation are no exception. The efforts by Western students to expand and improve the non-car options available to students help to lessen Western’s impact on the greater Bellingham community, and help nudge Bellingham toward a more sustainable future.

While Western has grown in size, through programs like the Viking Xpress Bus Pass, there has been a significant decline in the number of students getting to campus by driving. While there certainly are more WTA buses on the road, this pales in comparison to the prospect of thousands of off-campus students driving to and from campus every weekday, adding to congestion on Bellingham’s roads.

Programs like the universal bus pass offer Western students a viable alternative to driving, meaning fewer students are driving alone to campus and more students are seeking other options. Additionally, these efforts help to move our entire community toward a more sustainable future.

Western’s students are a much a part of Bellingham as all other residents. The various alternative transportation options that are available to students mean that a sizable number of Bellingham residents are choosing to get around in a more sustainable manner, helping to make Bellingham less car-centric.

Also, some of the initiatives started at Western or in response to Western benefit all of Whatcom County. Increased WTA service, such as service to the Amtrak station on Sunday evenings, while perhaps targeted at students, is open and available to everyone. WTA has taken the example of the universal bus pass at Western and used it as a model for its new bus pass program for employers, which allows employers to get discounted bus passes for their employees under certain conditions.

Whatcom County and Bellingham also help to contribute to Western’s efforts. Living in a community “devoted to alternative transportation” goes a long way to make all of Western’s efforts possible, said Ben Wurtz, former AS Vice President for Student Life.

Western will face many challenges and opportunities in the future. One of the most important opportunities in the near future is the renewal of the Student Transportation Fee in the spring of 2012. Successful renewal of the fee will require coordination between WTA and Western to maintain a workable fee structure, Holmgren said.

“There are a lot of opportunities for us in the future of this fee, and I think Western’s students are up to the task of taking advantage of them,” Holmgren said.

WWU Sustainable Transportation Program Manager Carol Berry said she also sees challenges and opportunities ahead. The university will need to pay careful attention to costs and continue the ASTAC to ensure programs stay current, Berry said.

“Supporting the use of transportation options that are socially equitable, energy efficient and financially viable provides students with a means for engagement in sustainable practices with immediate as well as long-term results,” Berry said.

The biggest challenges facing alternative transportation at Western are finding sustainable funding, increasing transit frequency and using alternative transportation modes to connect Western to the greater community, said Devin Branson, the AS Alternative Transportation Coordinator during Western Student Transportation’s first year (Fall 2007-Spring 2008).

Student involvement and interest in sustainable transportation issues and decisions will need to continue to be fostered and encouraged. Students have been the driving force behind much of the success that Western has had up to this point in regards to sustainable transportation, and they will need to continue to be the driving force behind future improvements.

It is important to continue education about transportation options each year, as it will be up to today’s students to ensure that each new crop of leaders that emerge on campus will be engaged in this vitally important issue. Student involvement has made much of what has occurred up to this point possible, and it is student involvement that will continue to move the entire community forward into a sustainable future. §