Integrating the Transportation System with a University Campus Transportation Master Plan: A Case Study

University campuses are considered major trip attractors. This intense level of activity generates significant congestion levels within the campuses and in their vicinity, particularly in urban campus settings. With university enrollment trends expected to increase substantially in the next decade, this problem can only be expected to become worse. In addition, university campus settings are multi-modal and complex in nature, incorporating vehicular traffic, transit, and pedestrians into one transportation system. This creates a significant challenge for university campus planners when trying to incorporate their campus master plan into the overall regional or metropolitan transportation system. Systematic approaches to planning for the interaction of the various transport modes (including auto, transit, bicycle, and pedestrians) within the university campus system, and for the integration of these different modes with the larger transportation system, have not been documented. The mix of concentrated levels of pedestrian and bicycle traffic with vehicular congestion in a campus setting creates a number of significant conflict areas that range from pedestrian and cyclist safety to traffic and transit operations. These conflicts are exacerbated by the multijurisdictional nature of these interactions, which involve authorities at the campus, city, and state level. The objective of this research is to document a systematic approach to analyze the problems associated with the interaction and integration between university campus transportation systems and the larger metropolitan transportation system, in order to develop solutions to these problems.