Advisory Committee on Transportation - Minutes
Meeting Place: Department of Public Safety, Staff Development Room
Date: February 19, 2014
Time: 3:00 pm
Meeting chaired by: Chief Jeff McCracken
Members in attendance: Dr. Christopher Payne, Richie Grimsley for Willie Scroggs, Nick
Pittman for Brian Litchfield, Cheryl Stout, Jackie Overton, Eleanor Saunders, Sam Pranikoff and
Jeff Watson for Tom Smith
Guests: Than Austin, Associate Director for Transportation Planning and Strategy, Dept. of
Public Safety and Amanda Simmons, Transportation Demand Manager, Dept. of Public Safety
Absent: Tom Thornburg, Prof. Frank Baumgartner, Gene Bober, John Tallmadge and Mel
Hurston
1. Bike Friendly University Application (Austin)
Than Austin reported that graduate students within the department of City and Regional
Planning are working on an application to have UNC designated as a “Bike Friendly
University.” Currently both Duke and NCSU have implemented a “Bike Friendly” policy.
Chief McCracken will inform Meredith Weiss, AVC Finance and Administration of the
impending application who will in turn inform the Chancellor as needed. Also, the Bike
Masterplan project is in the works.
2. Night Parking (Stout)
A handout was distributed by Cheryl Stout explaining 2014-15 night parking. The
information is as follows:
Beginning August 15, 2014, UNC will implement a Night Parking fee for campus parking
lots. There will be some changes to the current status, which includes:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
All campus lots will require a permit or payment for hourly parking in visitor/meter
spaces
Enforcement hours will be Monday-Friday (24 hours)
Parking will be a first-come, first-serve basis in most campus permitted lots during
evening hours unless areas are reserved for events or for specific use as noted by
signs at lot entrance.
Daytime permits (including park and ride) are honored in permitted night parking
areas.
Night parking permits will be honored in lots designated as permitted night parking.
Employees will go through department coordinators to register for a night parking
pass.
Students will go online to register for permits.
Event parking will occur in lots across campus and signs will be posted at lot
entrances.
Temporary permits can be purchased after hours online or at designated locations.
Employee Information
• Employees will register for night parking permits (NP) with their department
coordinator.
• The pricing scale for NP employee permits:
Permit Type
NP = Night Parking
Pay Scale
<$25
$25 - <$50
$50 - $100
>$100
2014-15
$227
$250
$300
$390
2015-16
$227
$250
$300
$390
Student Information
• Students will register online for night parking permits (NP). Students (excluding first
year students) will be eligible for a permit.
• Pricing for NP student permits: $10.40 annual fee (exempt first year students)
Visitor Information
• All hourly parking lots (Morehead, Raleigh Road, Rams Head, Dogwood, ACC and
Hospital Front) and meters will be operational Monday-Friday (24 hours). HP permits
will be honored in visitor lots. All NP permits must exit facilities prior to 7:30 am
when day hours begin. Hourly rates = $1.50 per hour.
Event Information
• Lots may be designated and reserved throughout campus for “Event” operations. DPS
will post in advance of event restrictions associated with parking lots across campus.
Pricing range for event parking after 5 pm = $2 - $14 per vehicle.
It was also stated that persons with a CAP permit will be allowed to park on campus with
their permit at night. Also temporary night permits will be issued to allow for parking on
campus at night as well.
3. Transportation Forums (Simmons)
Transportation Forums were conducted in November at the Student Union and UNC Hospital
with approximately 70 people in attendance. Below is a summary of the information
discussed at the forums:
Chapel Hill Transit (CHT)
Nick Pittman announced the North South Corridor Alternatives Analysis and the Financial
Sustainability Study.
•
•
•
•
NS route – additional service for Southern Village
F and D routes – service after 6 pm on weekdays
Night service during summer
Use of semi-trucks parking at Jones Ferry Road
2
Triangle Transit (TT)
John Tallmadge mentioned proposed fare increases.
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
CRX route – standees at 4 pm from UNC and at 7:20 am for District Drive.
o Plan includes increased peak (15 minute) service but needs Wake County
funding
CRX route – 4 pm is arriving late at Franklin Street contributing to overcrowding.
CRX route – add stop inbound at Hwy 54 and Farrington
CRX route – change arrival and departure times at UNC to match work schedules
400/405 routes – more frequent service after 6 pm and run later on Saturday (until 9
pm)
o Looking into 15 minute peak and 30 minute mid-day
Request for express bus from North Durham (Duke and Roxboro intersections)
Interest in Park and Ride along 540 to UNC
Request for direct bus from UNC to RDU Airport.
o No current plans for this
Bus Shelters
• Move bus shelters on campus, e.g., cantilevered rood shelters at UNC Student Stores,
Fetzer Gym, and UNC Hospitals
• Improving waiting environment at Regional Transit Center (not enough sheltered
area)
• Bus stop shelters leaking
o Staff periodically addresses broken facilities. Public can access a tab on CHT
homepage for customer service online. Goes straight to CHT general inbox.
• Put System Maps in shelters
Technology
• Add Triangle Transit to CHT next bus signs
o Complicated due to proprietary issues (requires NextBus and TransLoc
integration)
• Integrate radio systems between TT and CHT
o Not feasible due to logistics
• Can operators contact 911 directly? (incident on route 405; long delay for police)
Light Rail
• Request for light rail to access airport
• Request for bike connections to light rail
Vanpool
• Request for vanpool or bus from Mebane
• Request to be notified when new van seats open
Bikes
• More bike parking at bus stops on campus
3
•
•
•
•
Track where and when bikes are turned away due to full racks
Change policy to allow bikes on buses
o Not possible due to legal reasons
Interest in bike share on UNC campus to get from South Road to Medical Center
Will need bike parking at Carter-Finley (when it becomes a Park & Ride)
In the future forums will be mixed with information sessions and one-on-one networking
tables.
4. Other
• Than Austin announced that he wanted to make the committee aware that Chapel Hill
Transit is currently involved in a “Financial Sustainability Study.” Nick Pittman, CHT
representative, reported that the study will begin public hearings during the first week of
March.
• Chief Jeff McCracken updated the committee on the operation of the past adverse
weather (February 12-15, 2014). Weather reports coming into the University were
predicting the snow would begin between 1-3 pm however the storm came before that
time at a much quicker rate than anyone thought. Classes were closed at 1 pm and
University offices shut down later during the day causing a major traffic jam. The Chief
talked with TT representative John Tallmadge about their operations in preparation for a
better plan during the next adverse weather period and better communication with Dept.
of Public Safety.
• Cheryl Stout stated that the Dept. of Public Safety P2P services were in the middle of
discussions about updates (i.e., routes, disability riders, equipment, schedule, etc.) with
student representatives.
• Nick Pittman reported that the S. Columbia Street bus stop at Health Science Library is
tentatively scheduled to reopen within 6-8 weeks (once the two bus shelter arrives). The
stop will be ~50-75 ft. from the original stop.
Next meeting date(s): Wednesday, March 19, 2014
4