Newark mayor wants University of Delaware students to leave the driving to bus service
By Katy Ciamaricone In his annual �welcome� letter to incoming University of Delaware students this fall, Mayor Hal Godwin plans to firmly suggest: �Leave your cars at home.� Godwin commented on the number of undergrads with cars at the recent meeting of the Town and Gown Committee. �I would like to get firmer in pushing bicycle use, buses, and interconnectivity,� Godwin said. In a school with more than 19,000 students, traffic jams are inevitable once in a while � or every day, if your rush hour schedule includes driving on Chapel Street or Cleveland, North College, Library, or Delaware avenues between September and June. Lawrence Thornton, director of the University of Delaware Public Safety Department, said about 2,000 students who live on-campus bought parking permits this year. That doesn�t include the students who live in nearby homes and apartments. But how can students be convinced to travel around town without operating their heavy, street-clogging machines? �Students have transportation needs � we can�t just tell them, �Don�t bring your cars,� if there are no options,� Godwin said, noting that alternatives have to be as attractive and easy as getting behind the wheel. Ted Matley, executive director of the Wilmington Area Planning Committee (WILMAPCO), suggested city and university officials make local bus routes more user-friendly. DART buses stop on Main Street, Delaware Avenue, Library Avenue, Elkton Road, and College Square Shopping Center, all in Newark, and travel to Bear, Wilmington, Christiana Mall and Elkton, Md., among other places. But, it�s hard to get students used to riding the DART buses, Matley said; city officials must find ways to promote the services. Town-Gown members said perhaps giving out free DART passes would convince students to board the buses. DART passes are available for sale at the Trabant Center, and schedules are available there, at the city Municipal Building, or online. Similarly, University of Delaware shuttle buses make stops all over campus � on Elkton Road, at most dormitories, and at the Bob Carpenter Sports Center. Bus schedules are available all over campus and on the University of Delaware website. But, buses need to be more reliable to convince students to board them, said Susan Stanford, a member of the university�s Undergraduate Student Council. Stanford said she often rides the bus. �But it�s sometimes a problem if students have something to do at night,� she said. Buses run less frequently; after 6 p.m., they only stop about every 40 minutes � and the buses do not stop at all at some places. Thornton said the Transportation Advisory Commission is a good avenue for students to voice their concerns about transportation. According to Matley, possible ways to reduce traffic include: a centrally-located transit hub; smaller vans to replace the full-sized buses that transport students locally; encouraging residents to carpool and bicycle around campus; allowing local residents to bring their bikes onto buses; and limiting undergraduate parking to the University of Delaware Field House and peripheral lots. The suggestions are meant as direction for future studies, he said; they are not based on exhaustive research. Matley added that the university also would need to provide drivers with more links from remote lots to the main campus. ---- You are receiving this because you are subscribed to the Bicycle Coalition of the Delaware Valley list named "bike." To subscribe or unsubscribe or for archive information, see <http://www.purple.com/list.html>.
