2 0 0 9 S t a t e of t h e Commu t e Repo r t
Spring 2009
Creating a State of the
Commute Report
T
o reach our campus each day, thousands of students, staff, and faculty use alternative modes,
such as public transit, cycling, and walking.
The popularity of these sustainable modes stems from
the success of UCLA’s transportation program, which includes
vanpools, public transit pass
subsidies, carpools, a bicycle
program, and campus shuttles.
But just how many people
UCLA Campus Shuttle
are using each of these modes?
Through the first-ever State
of the Commute Report, UCLA Transportation seeks to
answer those questions. UCLA Transportation will also
attempt to evaluate the University’s progress in reaching
its short and long-term transportation and environmental
policy goals. For example, how does the University’s progress in moving people onto sustainable modes compare
with the Los Angeles region at large?
The 2009 State of the Commute Report relies upon
the following sources:
• UCLA Transportation’s annual survey of employee travel behavior for its Air Quality Management
District (AQMD) reporting requirements.
• UCLA Transportation’s annual Spring Student
Transportation Survey, which collects information on
the travel behavior of students living off-campus.
• UCLA Transportation’s annual bicycle rack utilization inventory.
• UCLA Parking Services’ annual parking inventory.
• UCLA Transportation’s annual fall cordon count.
This report also includes data from transit providers
which serve UCLA, including Big Blue Bus and Culver City
Bus; Zipcar, the car-sharing company; and UCLA Fleet and
Transit.
Characteristics
of UCLA
commuters
T
he daytime population at UCLA is approximately 55,000 to 60,000 people
per day. Table 1 reports the student and
employee population at UCLA; Table 2 reports
more specific demographic data about the student body, including the ratio of undergraduate to graduate students and the percentage of
students living on and off campus.
Table 1. Total population
Students (undergraduate &
graduate)
Faculty and Staff
Total population
Characteristics of commuters at UCLA. . . . . .1
How do UCLA commuters get to campus?. . 8
How to continue UCLA’s progress in fulfilling
its Climate Action Plan goals? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16
58,771
Table 2. Demographics of UCLA
student body1
Total
All Students
Undergraduate
On-campus
Creating a State of the Commute Report. . . .1
22,2682
1. From UCLA Analysis and Information Management
(AIM). Three-quarter average head count for 2007-2008.
This figure includes students who are studying abroad and
not currently on campus.
2. 2008 UCLA Parking Master Plan.
Graduate/Interns
Report Contents
Population
36,5031
Undergraduate
Graduate
Commuters
Percentage2
36,503
24,175
66%
12,328
34%
10,633
9,275
1,358
25%
4%
24,210
66%3
1. UCLA AIM three-quarter average head count 2007-08.
2. Percents are rounded.
3. Commuter and on-campus percents do not equal 100%
due to students abroad and not currently on campus.
2009 State of the Commute Report
1
Number of residents (thousands)
Figure 1. Spatial distribution of UCLA staff and
academic employee residences
Staff
Academic
Over 75 miles
50 to 75
Distance from UCLA's main campus (miles)
30 to 50
20 to 30
15 to 20
10 to 15
5 to 10
4 to 5
3 to 4
2 to 3
1 to 2
0 to 1
4.5
4.0
3.5
3.0
2.5
2.0
1.5
1.0
.5
0
In general, UCLA staff members
live further away than faculty members from the main campus. The graph
in Figure 1 suggests that the median
commute distance amongst staff at
UCLA is about ten miles. In contrast, the median commute distance
amongst faculty members is about
four miles. And as Table 3 reports,
over half of the faculty live fewer than
five miles from the main campus.
The hot spot map pictured in
Figure 2 illustrates the spatial distribution of employee residences across the
region. Full-time employees commute
to UCLA everyday from across Southern California, including Palmdale in
the Imperial Valley, San Bernardino
County, Ventura County, and Orange
County.
Table 3. How far do faculty and
staff live from the main UCLA
campus?
Distance Faculty
UCLA
Pacific
Ocean
red = most
blue = least
Figure 2. The spatial distribution of all faculty and
staff residences across Southern California.
Staff
Both
1
13%
6%
7%
2
3
22%
30%
13%
17%
14%
19%
4
42%
26%
28%
5
10
15
53%
72%
79%
33%
51%
65%
35%
53%
67%
20
83%
72%
74%
30
50
90%
92%
82%
88%
83%
88%
75
93%
89%
90%
75+
100%
100%
100%
Although half of the staff commute fewer than 10 miles
each way, approximately half of the staff and almost 30%
of the faculty live more than 10 miles from campus.
2
UCLA Transportation
Top 20 Zip Codes with the Most UCLA Full-time Employees: Spring 2008
TOP 20 ZIP CODES:
UCLA EMPLOYEE LOCATIONS
ZIP
90024
90034
90025
90066
90049
90064
90403
90046
90405
90404
90036
90291
90035
90230
90250
90019
90045
91403
90048
90016
-
AREA - POPULATION
Westwood
1,538
Palms
881
Sawtelle
755
Mar Vista
649
Brentwood
351
West L.A.
221
Santa Monica 205
Hollywood
176
Santa Monica 173
Santa Monica 159
Mid-Wilshire
144
Venice
139
West L.A.
127
Culver City
123
Hawthorne
116
Mid-City
115
Westchester
105
Sherman Oaks 104
Mid-City West 100
West Adams
97
Figure 3a. Top 20
zip codes with the
most UCLA fulltime employee
residents.
All but one of the 20 most popular zip codes
amongst UCLA employees are within ten miles of the
main UCLA campus (Figure 3a). They include neighborhoods in West Los Angeles and Santa Monica, Hollywood, Mid-City, Sherman Oaks, and Hawthorne.
Figure 3b (on page 4) shows the top 20 zip codes
most densely populated by staff; they overlap with
most of the communities shown in Figure 3a, the
map showing the top 20 most popular zip codes for
all UCLA employees. Granada Hills, a neighborhood
near the 405 and 118 freeways in the San Fernando
Valley with roughly 220 staff members, stands out, as
it is not on the top 20 list for all employees and its
distance from Westwood makes a commute via transit
difficult.
Figure 3c offers a closer examination of the top
20 most populous zip codes amongst faculty members. Communities further than 10 miles away from
campus on the list include Palos Verdes Peninsula, as
well as communities west of campus, like Topanga,
are shown on the map.
Figure 3d suggests that employees hired within
the past five years were more likely to live closer to
campus.
See
page 6 on page 5
Continued
2009 State of the Commute Report
3
Top 20 Zip Code Areas with the Most UCLA Staff Residents: Spring 2008
14
V
U
STEVENSON RANCH
NEWHALL
SYLMAR
91344GRANADA HILLS
220
CHATSWORTH
V
U
N HILLS
MISSIO
NORTHRIDGE
118
N
SA
A
RN
FE
O
ND
§
¦
¨
210
TUJU
NGA
SIMI VALLEY
SUNLAND
PACOIMA
NORTH HILLS
CANOGA PARK
SUN VALLEY
CI
T
Y
NORTH
RESEDA
VAN NUYS
WEST HILLS
§
¦
¨
HOLLYW
OOD
5
BURBANK-GLENDALE-PASADENA
V
U
LL
VA
WOODLAND HILLS
K
AN
RB
BU
170
AGOURA HILLS
EY
101
£
¤
GLE
ND
ALE
WINNETKA
PA
NO
RA
MA
L
VI
134
E
ENCINO
V
U
G
LA
M
ER
SH
TARZANA
AN
S
AK
O
STUDIO CITY
CALABASAS
310 90046
§
¦
¨
TOPANGA
BEVERLY HILLS
405
617
WEST HOLLYWOOD
LOS ANGELES
90049
PACIFIC PALISADES
P
!
90036
227
90024
1928
90035
MALIBU
400
90403
393
90404
372
90025
1551
527 90064
90034
A
NIC
O
AM
NT 90405
SA
284
1393
90066
VENICE
307
§
¦
¨
10
235 90016
CU
LVE
R
CIT
Y
450
Number of Residents
XXX: Absolute number of residents
IN
GL
E
PLAYA DEL REY
337 90045
220-300
LOS ANGELES INTL
μ
701-900
900 and More
Freeway System
UCLA
0
1.25
2.5
5
7.5
Miles
10
MA
NHA
TTA
NB
EAC
H
HERMOSA BEACH
105
HAWTHORNE
LAW
ND
ALE
Figure 3b. Top 20 zip code areas with the most UCLA staff residents.
UCLA Transportation
§
¦
¨
90250
360
REDONDO BEACH
EL SEGUNDO
4
D
TORRANCE
GARD
ENA
501-700
P
!
W
OO
The Pacific Ocean
301-500
H:\Sustainable Transportation\Regional Info\Housing Prices
04/2008
90019
247
90232
90230
90291 MARINA DEL REY
Legend
1842
255
Top 20 Zip Code Areas with the Most UCLA Faculty Residents
THOUSAND OAKS
OAK PA
NORTHRIDGE
VAN NUYS
V
U
170
£
¤
AGOURA HILLS
VALLEY VILLAGE
91436
66
45
90210
H
LY
ER
PA
S
AD
EN
A
SAN MARINO
49 90046
V
U
SOUTH PASADENA
110
V
U
WEST HOLLYWOOD
710
ILL
L
GE
AN
277
V
BE
S
LO
147 90272
S
PACIFIC PALISADES
210
V
U
35
151
90077
90290
TOPANGA
§
¦
¨
2
U
V
57
134
NO
SHERMAN OAKS
CI 91403
91423 STUDIO C UNIVERSAL CITY
EN
ITY
CALABASAS
35
5
NK
TARZANA
WOODLAND HILLS
WESTLAKE VILLAGE
§
¦
¨
BURBANK-GLENDALE-PASADENA
RK
101
TRIDGE
LA CANADA FLIN
GL MONTROSE
EN
DA
LE
ALTADENA
LA CRESCENTA
SUN VALLEY
PANORAMA CITY
NORTH HOLLYWOOD
RESEDA
ES
90049
MALIBU
75
90402
90403
106
90405
P
!
384
90024
169
90025
90064
150
79
10
V
U
90035
35
90034
SAN GABRIEL
ALH
AM
BR
A
ROSEMEAD
MONTEREY PARK
§
¦
¨
60
V
U
10
ICA
ON
118
AM
NT 9066
57
SA
90066 CULVER CITY
ICE
VEN
MARINA DEL REY 90230
MONTEBELLO
WEST HILLS
A
RB
BU
WINNETKA
CHATSWORTH
CANOGA PARK
SIMI VALLEY
23
U
V
MAYWOOD
90291
HUNTINGTON PARK
PICO RIVERA
BELL
§
¦
¨
INGLEWOOD
§
¦
¨
105 LYNWO
O
LOS ANGELES INTL
Number of Residents*
91
V
U
HERMOSA BEACH
R
LONG BEACH
W
KE
LA
TORRAN
CE
35-50
O
O
CERRITOS
D
REDONDO BEACH
§
¦
¨
51-100
CARSON
110
Pacific Ocean
101-200
35
LOMITA
PALOS VERDES PENINSULA
HARBOR CITY
WILMINGTON
90274
201-300
36
μ
Freeway System
UCLA
H:\GIS\Statt_Addresses\TopFaculty2008 August 2008
SAN PEDR
O
RANCHO PALOS VERDES
301 and more
P
!
PARAMO
UNT
COMPTON
LF
LO
WE
58
BE
L
90266
MANHATTAN BEACH LAWNDALE
XXX: Absolute number of residents
*Including tenured and non-tenured track faculty
DO
WN
EY
D
HAWTHORNE
GARD
ENA
EL SEGUNDO
Legend
SO
710
UT
HG
ATE
90275
0
1.25 2.5
5
Miles
10
7.5
SEAL BEACH
Top 20 Zip Code Areas with the Most Recent UCLA Employees Hired: 2004-2008
2
V
U
§
¦
¨
5
LOS ANGELES
204
90046
101
£
¤
LOS ANGELES
420
90049
§
¦
¨
LOS ANGELES
133 90026
405
ANGELES
!LOS90024
P
124 90048 LOS ANGELES
LOS ANGELES 90036
173
2189
152 90035
90019
160
LOS ANGELES
LOS ANGELES
LOS ANGELES
271 90064
LOS ANGELES
LOS ANGELES
90034
138 90016
1041
907 90025
LOS ANGELES
SANTA MONICA242
90403
201 90404
SANTA MONICA
SANTA MONICA
205 90405
V
U
110
§
¦
¨
10
LOS ANGELES
743
90066
VENICE
165 90291
152 90230
CULVER CITY
§
¦
¨
110
Legend
Number of Employees
XXX: Absolute number of employees
126
120-200
90045
LOS ANGELES
201-300
301-400
The Pacific Ocean
§
¦
¨
105
401-1,000
150
1,000 and More
μ
HAWTHORNE
90250
Freeway System
P UCLA
!
H:\Sustainable Transportation\Regional Info\Housing Prices
04/2008
Miles
0 0.5 1
2
3
4
From top: Figure 3c. Top 20 zip code areas with the most UCLA faculty residents.
Figure 3d. Top 20 zip codes with employees hired between 2004 and 2008.
5
NORWALK
PLAYA DEL REY
UCLA Transportation
Continued from page 3
There are many possible explanations for this trend.
For one, traffic congestion worsened and housing prices skyrocketed during the years between the date
of hire for UCLA veterans and recent hires; this in turn may have affected how they made their locational
choices.
Recent hires may also be more willing to live in the rental housing in denser neighborhoods near UCLA
instead of buying a detached single-family home further away.
Finally, it is possible that the younger employees hired since 2004 have found it desirable to live in gentrifying areas relatively close-in to campus. The list of 20 zip codes with the most recently hired UCLA employees
also includes 90026, which is one of the zip codes in Silver Lake. Silver Lake is a gentrifying neighborhood
close to downtown that attracts young professionals, including UCLA employees. Although zip code 90026 is
about 13 miles from campus, there is reliable transit between the UCLA campus and this area.
Understanding the residential choices made by UCLA employees is under further study.
Vehicle Trips and Traffic
U
CLA has voluntarily agreed to cap the
number of daily vehicle trips to the campus to fewer than 139,500. To track the University’s progress in meeting this target, each
fall UCLA Transportation completes a cordon
count, which tracks the number of trips made
by car and bus to campus over the course of a
week.
Table 4 reports the number of vehicle trips
to UCLA each day by campus area, with a bus
subtraction.
The number of vehicle trips to UCLA fell
for the fifth year in a row to roughly 112,000
vehicle trips to and from UCLA each day. This
is 6% lower than the Fall 2007 cordon count.
Furthermore, the number of vehicle trips to
UCLA in 2008 is down by 9% overall since
1990, the year UCLA Transportation began
tracking vehicle trips. (Note: At the time of
the 2008 cordon count in the third week of
October, gasoline prices were still very high.
This likely impacted traffic volumes.)
Through the cordon count, traffic patterns
onto and off campus are captured. As illustrated in Figure 4, the most popular entrance
to the University is Le Conte and Westwood
Plaza; other heavily utilized entrances to the
University include the intersection of Strathmore and Gayley and Sunset and Westwood
Plaza.
Table 4. Number of trips to UCLA, 2006-2008
Location
Main campus
2006
2007
104,292 102,417
2008
96,171
Southwest campus
14,058
15,196
14,216
Wilshire Center•
•(By formula)
2,058
2,058
2,058
-402
-402
112,043 119,269
-402
120,006
Bus trip subtraction
Total
A vehicle travels around the traffic circle at Ackerman
Terminal. On average, there are roughly 112,000 vehicle
trips to the campus daily.
2009 State of the Commute Report
6
Figure 4.Traffic Volume by Intersection
at UCLA in 2008
Char Cross/Hilgard
Sunset/Royce
Sunset/Bellagio
Wyton/Hilgard
Sunset/WW Plaza
Westholme/Hilgard
Strathmore/Gayley
Manning/Hilgard
Gayley/Young Dr. S.
0
250 500
Feet
1,000
1,500
2,000
Reagan Hospital/Gayley
Gayley/Str 1
Magnolia Court/Midvale
Weyburn Ter at Veteran N.
Westwood/Le Conte
Tiverton/Le Conte
Lot 31 N.
Legend
Lot 31 S.
Sycamore Court. N.
Sycamore Court. S.
Weyburn Dr. @ Palm Ct.
Lot MR
Palm Court/Veteran
Str 32 Exit @ Midvale Alley
:
Str 32 South Entrance/Exit
Lot 36 @ Kinross Intersection
Str 32 @ Kinross Intersection
100
1,000
10,000
Campus_Lines
Buildings
t:\planning\CATMS\
Figure 4. Traffic Volume by Intersection at UCLA in Fall 2008
7
UCLA Transportation
Commuters arrive on campus using a variety of
modes, including by car and on foot.
How do UCLA
commuters
get to campus?
Bicycle
T
he use of bikes to commute to
and around the UCLA campus has
grown in visibility following the adoption of the UCLA Bicycle Master Plan
in 2006.
The findings of UCLA Transportation’s May 2008 Bike Rack Utilization
Survey suggest that bike racks are heavily utilized, especially by residents in
UCLA campus housing on the Northwest Campus and at Weyburn Terrace.
The results of the survey are summarized in Table 5. Additional bike racks
are deployed as the bicycling population grows.
Roughly 1.3% of employees and
4.5% students commute to UCLA by
bicycle on a daily basis. 1
Table 5. Bike rack utilization at UCLA
Bike
Racks
Campus area
Capacity
No. of
bikes on
racks
No. of
bikes on
railings
Northwest Campus
132
1,067
272
12
South Campus
174
525
147
6
Central Campus
156
397
200
5
North Campus
128
151
123
8
Health Sciences and
Southwest Campus
41
236
103
7
Total
642
2,508
958
57
Employee mode split calculated using results from 2008 AQMD Survey
data (full day, not the AM window
period). Student mode split calculated using results from UCLA Transportation’s annual Spring Student
Survey.
1
Bike racks conveniently located
near academic buildings and
student residences are often at
capacity during the day. Right:
A student locks up his bicycle
near one of the Engineering
buildings.
2009 State of the Commute Report
8
Campus Express & Wilshire Express Shuttle Bus Routes
Table 6. Typical ridership on the UCLA Campus Express and Wilshire Express, 2005-2007
A decorated Campus Express shuttle bus.
U
CLA Transportation estimates that the Campus
Express and Wilshire Express provide 1.1 million trips to, from, and around campus annually.
On a typical day, Table 6 reports that the Campus
Express serves 3,300 passenger trips and the Wilshire
Express serves 1,700 passenger trips.
The two campus shuttle routes serve a diverse
constituency. But as the mode split pie chart for both
the Campus Shuttle (Figure 6) and the Wilshire Shuttle (Figure 7) show, many riders are transfers from
other modes. These modes include transit, vanpools,
cycling, and carpooling.
Additionally, as reported in Table 7, roughly 5%
of passengers on both routes had parked their cars
elsewhere before boarding a shuttle to reach their final destination.
Figure 6. What percentage of Campus Express
riders transfer from other modes?
Dropped Off,
1%
Vanpool, 1% Carpool, 2%
Campus Express
2,786
3,263
3,279
Wilshire Express
1,836
1,639
1,727
Total
4,622
4,902
5,006
This is a mid-week count during the middle of the quarter.
Table 7. Where do commuters park cars before transferring to a UCLA campus shuttle?
Wilshire
Shuttle
Campus
Express
UCLA Permit
163
26
Daily Permit
12
2
Off-Campus Lot
19
5
Surface Street
36
38
230
71
Total
Figure 7. What percentage of Wilshire Express
riders transfer from other modes?
Dropped Off,
1%
Vanpool, 1% Carpool, 2%
Live On Campus or
Weyburn Terrace,
2%
Public Bus, 6%
Bike/Walk, 8%
Public Bus, 7%
Campus
Shuttle, 46%
Wilshire
Shuttle, 68%
Drive Alone,
17%
9
Live On
Campus or
Weyburn
Terrace, 14%
2007
2006
2005
UCLA Transportation
Bike/Walk, 12%
Drive Alone,
11%
Carpooling
C
arpool represents the mode of choice for about 6% of students and 17% of faculty and staff. UCLA
Transportation offers a discounted parking permit to students, faculty, and regular visitors who sign up
to carpool together. The number of permits sold and the number of carpoolers parking with those permits
are listed below in Table 8.
Table 8. Carpoolers at UCLA*
Students
Fall Quarter 2005
606 permits
1,451 participants
Staff/Faculty
Non-UCLA
(volunteers, visitors/
temps)
410 permits
934 participants
Not Available
TOTAL
1,016 carpools
2,385 participants
Fall Quarter 2006
468 permits
413 permits
7 permits
888 carpools
1,168 participants
941 participants
17 participants
2,126 participants
Fall Quarter 2007
415 permits
422 permits
7 permits
844 carpools
1,022 participants
958 participants
15 participants
1,995 participants
Fall Quarter 2008
379 permits
454 permits
6 permits
839 carpools
935 participants
1,025 participants
15 participants
1,975 participants
Note: The number of permits sold include both 2- and 3- person carpools; student sub-totals include both undergraduate and graduate student populations.
* Source: Parking Services, UCLA Transportation
Public Transit
D
uring the 2007-2008 year, about 21% of students and 14% of staff and faculty used public
transit regularly to commute to UCLA (see Table 9
and Figure 8). The percentage of commuters using
public transit has risen since 1990. Between 1990
and 2008, the percentage of staff and faculty using
transit to get to campus doubled, from 7% to 14%.
Above: UCLA staff and students who buy a Go Metro
pass receive a Transit Access Pass (TAP card) from
the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation
Authority like the one pictured above. Bottom right:
UCLA is served by five area transit agencies, including the Culver CityBus.
Table 9. Transit mode split use at UCLA
1990
Students
15%
2000
2004
2008
17%
23%
21%
Staff/Faculty
7%
7%
11%
14%
2009 State of the Commute Report
10
11
UCLA Transportation
Above: A Big Blue Bus (BBB) 12 waits at the Hilgard Terminal,
the northern terminus of its route. Five BBB routes serve the
main UCLA campus.
Figure 8. Student and employee transit mode share,
1990-2008
30%
Percentage
25%
20%
15%
10%
5%
0%
1990
1996
Year
Students
2002
Employees
2008
Dash = Interpolated
Figure 9. Go Metro Transit Pass Sales,
Fall 2005-Fall 2008
Number of GoMetro passes sold
Since the development of
BruinGo, UCLA’s first transit
pass subsidy program, the percentage of transit riders has risen
significantly.
Since 2004, the transit mode
amongst students has fluctuated
between 20% and 23%. In that
time, Weyburn Terrace opened,
allowing 1,350 graduate students to move to the Southwest
Campus. Those students shifted
from being potential regular
public transit users to utilizing
other modes, such as the Campus Shuttle, walking, and cycling, to reach the main campus.
As a part of its Transportation Demand Management program, UCLA Transportation
partially subsidizes the purchase
of quarterly bus passes or bus
ride coupons for the five transit
agencies directly serving UCLA:
Metro through Go Metro; Big
Blue Bus and Culver CityBus
through BruinGo; City of Santa
Clarita Transit; and the Los Angeles Department of Transportation (LADOT).
UCLA subsidized over one
million Big Blue Bus (BBB) and
Culver CityBus rides during
FY2008 and over seven million
rides since BruinGo’s inception
1,600
1,255
1,400
1,434
1,022
1,200
1,000
800
600
639
400
200
0
Fall
2005
Fall
2006
Fall
2007
Quarter
Fall
2008
A Metro Rapid 761 bus
travels southbound on
Hilgard Avenue en route
to its terminus point by
Wilshire and Veteran.
The 761 is a key connector between the UCLA
campus and the eastern
San Fernando Valley.
Number of transit passes
in 2000 (see Table 10).
Figure 9 (on page 11) illustrates the rapid growth of
Figure 10. Sales of subsidized transit passes at UCLA
UCLA Transportation’s Go
since Winter 2006
Metro subsidy program. Be4,000
Santa
tween Fall Quarter 2005 and
3,500
Clarita
Fall Quarter 2008, the number
3,000
Transit1
2,500
LADOT2
of transit passes sold to students
2,000
and staff more than doubled.
Go Metro
1,500
Figure 10 reports the num(TAP)
1,000
ber of passes subsidized and sold
BruinGo
500
Flash Pass
by UCLA since 2006, separated
0
by transit operator.
According to Table 10,
Sale of passes on quarterly basis
UCLA subsidized over one mil1. Each packet contains 20 ride tickets. UCLA subsidizes the sale of two packets per month. 2. Before
lion Big Blue Bus and Culver
Winter 2008, LADOT fare was billed by Metro and included a Metro card. 3. Figures from Summer
2008 include passes distributed by UCLA Transportation as part of “Take a Vacation From the Pump”,
CityBus rides during FY2008
which provided employees who traded their parking permits with a free transit pass. 4. Eighty-three
Santa Clarita Transit packets were sold during August and September 2008. (Source: UCLA Central
and over seven million ridees
Ticket Office.) 5. One hundred and twenty-five LADOT passes during the months of September and
since BruinGo’s inception in
October 2008. (Source: UCLA Central Ticket Office.) 6. Fifty-five Santa Clarita Transit packets were
sold during October 2008.
2000.
Table 10. BruinGo ridership since inception
6
5,
08 ,4
3
20
ll
08
Fa
20
er
m
m
Su
08
20
g
rin
8
Sp
00
r2
te
in
W
07
20
ll
07
Fa
20
er
m
m
Su
7
0
20
g
rin
7
Sp
00
r2
te
in
W
06
20
ll
06
Fa
20
er
m
m
Su
06
20
g
rin
6
Sp
00
r2
te
in
W
Big Blue Bus Trips
Big Blue Bus Riders
Culver CityBus
Trips
Culver CityBus
Riders
BruinGo Total Trips
20002001
1,313,455
22,549
20012002200320042002
2003
2004
2005
1,661,161 1,918,667 1,350,529 1,149,084
26,657
30,044
26,420
22,801
20052006
968,050
200620072007
2008
733,549 974,1741
Not
Available
Not
Available
Not
Applicable3
Not
Applicable
Not
Applicable
163,672
179,055
169,162
141,141 108,9182
Not
Applicable
Not
Applicable
Not
Applicable
6,421
7,086
Not
Available
Not
Available
1,313,455
1,661,161 1,918,667 1,514,201 1,328,139 1,137,212
Not
Available
Not
Available
874,690 1,083,092
1. Missing 31 days - either omitted or underreported.
2. Change in fare collection machine meant that BruinGo riders did not have to swipe cards anymore.
3. UCLA Transportation added Culver CityBus to BruinGo in 2003.
2009 State of the Commute Report
12
Carsharing
Z
ipcar, the nation’s largest carsharing service,
serves the UCLA community with eleven Zipcars parked around the UCLA campus and in Westwood (see Figure 11). As of October 2008, there
are 181 students and 129 faculty members affiliated with UCLA’s Zipcar account.
As Figure 12 reports, on average, Zipcars enjoy
weekday utilization rates of over 30% on and weekend utilization rates of over 55%1.
Employees who use an alternative mode to commute to UCLA are eligible to join UCLA Transportation’s Alternative Mode Commuter Program, which
offers the complimentary use of a Zipcar for up to
eight hours per month.
Alternative mode commuters use Zipcars to travel anywhere from one to two miles away up to over
200 miles on a given trip; however, on average, they
travel between 15 and 23 miles.The typical user takes
a Zipcar for between two and three hours. Table 11
reports the average distance traveled, length of reservation, and total vehicle miles traveled by alternative
commuters between July and November 2008.
This XB Scion is one of the eleven available
Zipcars on the UCLA campus.
Figure 11. Locations of Zipcars at UCLA
and around Westwood
Lot 11
Covel
Structure 2
Commons
Structure 8
1015 Hilgard
Ave
Weyburn
Terrace
1
Note: Zipcar began its carsharing operation in June 2008 after
the completion of its merger with Flexcar. A complete set of data for Flexcar
use data is no longer available.
Table 11. UCLA Alternative Mode Commuter
Zipcar usage, July 2008 - December 2008
Average
distance
traveled (in
miles)
July ‘08
15
Aug. ‘08
Average
length of
reservation (in
hours)
2.4
21
3
Total
Number
Vehicle of unique
Miles
users
Traveach
eled
month
667
31
880
19
Figure 12. Utilization rate of Zipcars
between June and November 2008
80%
70%
60%
Percentage
Month
1300 Westwood
Blvd
S-S (Weekend)
50%
Overall
40%
M-F(Weekday)
30%
Average
Median
20%
Avg (M-F)
Med (M-F)
Sept. ‘08
Oct. ‘09
23
18
2.8
2.6
1,231
1,033
27
34
Nov. ‘08
Dec. ‘08
17
~19
2.8
2.7
680
902
33
28
10%
Avg (S-S)
Median (S-S)
0%
June ‘08
July ‘08
August ‘08
September ‘08
October ‘08
November ‘08
Month
Between July and November 2008, the utilization rate of these Zipcars
averaged over 30% during the week and over 55% on the weekends.
13
UCLA Transportation
Vanpool
Table 12. Demographics of
UCLA Vanpoolers
Destinations served
Number of vans
Occupancy rate
A
pproximately 2,500 staff, students, and community members
participate in UCLA’s Vanpool Program. About two-thirds
(1,678) of vanpoolers are full-time riders and, as Figure 13 shows,
they board vanpools at locations across Southern California, from
Apple Valley to San Bernardino County. Table 12 describes the
demographics of the vanpool riders and our fleet.
72
157
98%
Total number of
full-time participants
Students
Staff & faculty
1,678
Non-UCLA
participants
Part-time riders
135
Figure 13. UCLA Vanpool Program pick-up locations
161
1,281
700-800 trips
per month during peak periods
Left: UCLA vanpool vehicles carry up to 11 passengers.
Above: The map illustrates the spatial distribution of UCLA vanpool pick-up locations throughout Southern California.
Drive Alone
R
Figure 14. Employee and student drive-alone rate,
1990 to 2008
80%
70%
57%
60%
Percentage
oughly 57% of employees and 28% of
students reported driving to campus alone in
2008. This is far lower
than the commuter
drive-alone rate in the
Los Angeles metropolitan area of about 75%,
according to the Southern California Association of Governments
(SCAG). Figure 14 reports the drive-alone
rate for students and
staff between 1990 and
2008.
50%
40%
28%
30%
20%
10%
0%
1990
1992
1994
1996
1998
2000
2002
2004
2006
2008
Year
Employees
Students Dash = interpolated
2009 State of the Commute Report
14
On Foot
I
n the 2008 Spring Student Transportation Survey, 7,935
of the respondents - or roughly 30% - reported that they
walked to campus. According to the responses from the 2008
AQMD survey, roughly 5.6% of all staff and faculty report
walking to work.
Programs such as I Heart Walking Week, seek to promote walking as both a way to travel as well as a way
to exercise. Left: Participants in I Heart Walking Week
2008 walk briskly during one of the activities planned by
UCLA.
UCLA now and in the future
How do UCLA commuting
patterns compare with
the region as a whole?
Figure 15. Comparison of commute to
work mode split between Southern
California commuters and Faculty, Staff,
and Students at UCLA
80%
U
74%
Southern California at large
70%
Staff and Faculty at UCLA
60%
Percentage
CLA defies the infamous car culture of
Los Angeles. Los Angeles County drive
-alone commute rates are approximately 74%,
but UCLA employees come in significantly
lower, at around 57% (see Figure 15). Students
have even lower drive-alone rates at 28% and
heavily utilize the transit pass subsidies. Traffic
volumes into and out of campus have declined
for the past several years, even as campus activity has grown.
The passage of the American College and
University Presidents Climate Commitment
(ACUPCC) and the UC Policy on Sustainable
Practices led to the completion of UCLA’s first
ever Climate Action Plan. The Climate Action Plan included the calculation of UCLA’s
greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) campus-
57%
Students at UCLA
50%
40%
30%
28%
30%
21%
17%
20%
13%
6%
10%
14%
5%
6%
4%
0%
Drive
Alone
Carpool
Transit
Commute mode
Other
(including
walking)
UCLA bucks the infamous car culture of Los Angeles.
The drive-alone rate of UCLA employees is about 57%,
which is 17% lower than the region average of about 74%.
15
UCLA Transportation
TDM at UCLA
wide. Similar to the State’s climate
bill, AB32, UCLA’s commitment to
ACUPCC requires the reduction of
the University of California’s GHG
emissions to 1990 levels by the year
2020. By UCLA Transportation’s calculations, the campus’ mobile source
GHG emissions in 2007 were lower
than in either 1990 or 2000; thus, the
UCLA campus has already met part
of its goals set forth by the ACUPCC
and the UC Policy.
The University’s Transportation
Demand Management program has
been critical in this accomplishment.
How to continue UCLA’s progress in
fulfilling its Climate Action Plan goals?
UCLA Transportation intends to continue its TDM program to
keep up with the growth in the campus’ development and daytime
population. The UCLA Climate Action Plan states that behavioral
change at both the institutional and individual level is necessary
for the success of many of UCLA’s proposed initiatives to reduce
GHG emissions. UCLA Transportation seeks to lower the commuter drive-alone rate to 50% by 2014.
The initiatives articulated in the UCLA Climate Action Plan to
reduce overall vehicle miles traveled (VMT) include the following:
• The expansion of on-campus housing for undergraduate
and graduate students, workforce housing for staff and faculty.
• The expansion of transit, vanpool, carpool, walking, and
biking programs.
Sustainable
Transportation
at UCLA
Sustainable Transportation program at
TheUCLA
includes a menu of options:
• Transit pass subsidy agreements (at least
50% subsidy for students and employees);
• Commute support services, such as the
emergency ride home program.
• Discounted membership and hourly rentals for Zipcar, a car-sharing program serving
the UCLA campus.
• The installation of bicycle infrastructure,
such as bike lanes and sharrows; bike lockers;
and an agreement with UCLA Recreation
which provides all student and employee
commuters with shower access.
• Two shuttle routes (the Campus Express
and the Wilshire Express) enable staff and
students to travel around the University
as well as to transfer to and/or from other
modes to reach their final destination.
Above: A commuter parks her bike in a bicycle locker.
• UCLA Vanpool Program, which serves
nearly 1,700 staff, students, and community
participants, provides access to UCLA from
across six Southern California counties.
• Discounted parking permit for students
and staff who carpool.
• Zimride, a Facebook application, allows
users to focus carpool matches on those
within the UCLA network.
Currently, UCLA spends about $6.6 million dollars per year to fund the sustainable
modes program.
2009 State of the Commute Report
16