Now that the Olympics are over, the U has returned parking spaces to students, but new light rail construction may affect their commute.
On Tuesday, the U boasted 3,070 free parking spaces at 10:30 a.m., according to Alma Allred, director of Transportation and Parking Services.
“That is a lot more free spaces than before the Olympics,” he said.
Students could find vacant parking spaces when parking services instituted roadside parking before and after the Games, but the amount was only in the hundreds, Allred said.
When the Salt Lake Organizing Committee evacuated the Rice-Eccles Stadium and annex parking lots, the U still had 1,000 vacant spaces a day, Allred said. He credits the free spaces to increased use of TRAX and the bus.
Use of public transportation jumped when parking became scarce in November as the U lost 1,250 parking spaces because of the Rice-Eccles Stadium closure.
Allred never had a set goal for so many free spaces, but he is excited about the increased number of available spots.
“My goal is to have at least one vacant space, but I think that everyone at the U would like to have a little less congestion up here,” he said.
Although many students are taking public transportation, Allred is not worried about losing money from decreased parking pass purchases.
“We had quite a few people ask for refunds in December, but we haven’t had many since then,” Allred said.
According to Allred, more than half of the funding for parking services comes from parking pass sales, and the money also funds the shuttle system.
However, transportation problems at the U may resurface in May, as light rail construction begins.
The Utah Transit Authority plans to begin construction of a new rail line that will start at the current stadium station, continue up South Campus Drive, turn on to Wasatch Drive and end at the Moran Eye Center next to University Hospital. The line will not be completed until 2004.
The line will connect all of the health science facilities along Medical Drive, allowing TRAX access to each of them, said Kris McBride, spokesman for UTA.
However, the health sciences center line shouldn’t impact campus commuters as deeply as the construction impacted the business district along 400 South, McBride said.
“There will be some limitations and road closures, but we will be coordinating with the U to put the heaviest construction activities with the least impactful timing,” McBride said. “We received very high marks on mitigating the impact for the construction of the university line, and we will continue doing that.”
UTA’s Board of Trustees has allotted enough money to begin construction, but the federal government has yet to provide its 60 percent of the $89.4 million price tag.
“We are extremely confident the federal government will give us this grant, that’s the only reason we’re beginning,” McBride said.
UTA is responsible for the other 40 percent of the cost, and the U will contribute part of that percentage.
In total, $6.4 million of university facilities are identified as contributions to the new line.
“It’s not like the U is writing a $6.4 million check to UTA,” McBride said.
As part of the U’s contribution to the project, the federal government will count part of the cost for the pedestrian bridge over Wasatch Drive and the road space the line will be built on.
Throughout construction, UTA will have many of the same community information programs used during the university line construction.
“We will have a Web site and a 24-hour hotline to help answer commuters’ questions and help plan their commute around the construction,” he said.
McBride appreciates the U’s attitude toward light rail.
“The U’s willingness and great support of light rail in general has made it possible to extend light rail,” he said. “President Bernie Machen has been great to work with.”