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CSULB’s rising student population forces campus to seek alternative parking

By Danielle Grossman
Summer On-line Forty-Niner

Cal State Long Beach parking services has generated between $1 million and $1.6 million over the past three years to fund an expensive new parking structure, while finding alternative parking solutions in the meanwhile.
According to Tom Bass, director of Parking, Transportation and Event Services, Parking Services was caught by surprise when CSULB had an increase of 1,150 freshman in fall 2001. Bass anticipates that the total student headcount will increase by an additional 1,350 students.
“CSULB is a hot ticket campus right now,” Bass said. “A lot of people want to apply. The surge hit sooner than anticipated and we have a net need of 1,000 new spaces.”
The challenge, according to Bass, is adding new parking spaces and reducing demand. Cal State Long Beach Parking Services completed a study in April of student population by counties to help analyze and implement short-term and long-term solutions for the increasing parking problems that students and faculty face.
The long-term goal of Parking Services is to build a new parking structure in Lot 11 that would cost nearly $40 million. According to Bass, Parking Services will be financing the project with a bond that will not be sought until 2004-2005 because the decision to build a parking structure is a 25-year decision.
In addition, there will be a parking permit fee increase, probably double the current amount. But Bass assures that there will be no fee increase next year.
One of the short-term solutions Parking Services has come up with is a park and ride service. Currently, Parking Services is in negotiations with the Veterans Memorial Stadium in Long Beach to allow students to park at the stadium and take a shuttle to CSULB. There will be approximately 4,000 spaces available at the stadium and students will be given the incentive of a reduced fee. In addition, Parking Services has been guaranteed the use of 200 spaces at the Marina in Long Beach for the same purpose. There will be no charge to park there.
“We have been working to add parking spaces for the past four years without having to invest in large projects,” Bass said.
Parking Services plans to reduce demand by encouraging alternative transportation such as carpooling, taking the bus or bicycling for those who live within three miles of the campus. According to Bass, Parking Services is looking into coordinating with the mass transit system to improve the bus service in addition to trying to make the campus more user-friendly for bicyclists.
CSULB is not the only campus with parking problems. Cal State Northridge, also considered a commuter school, has about 31,000 students and has many of the same problems that CSULB does. According to James Parlor, associate director for Parking and Transportation Services at CSUN, the parking program is seeking many of the same short and long-term goals that CSULB is.
CSUN students will be facing a parking permit fee increase in July from $95 to $126 in order to cover the $25 million in building costs for two new parking structures that would add 2,500 spaces.
In order to ease the parking problems on the main campus, CSUN provides an overflow lot two miles from campus where students can park with a reduced-fee-parking permit. Shuttles running Monday through Friday between the times of 7 a.m. and 7:30 p.m. take students to the main campus, a 10 to 15 minute ride.
Another alternative solution that CSUN Parking Services provides is the subsidization of public transportation. If a student or faculty member purchases a bus pass, Parking Services will reimburse them for a maximum of $66. A shuttle bus is also provided to the Metrolink.
“We want to try and bring up incentives for students to look at,” Parlor said.
Both CSULB and CSUN will be looking at ways to market alternative transportation by providing incentives and creating a focused mailing letter that tells individual students of the transportation options for their residential area.