UF is one of the top 10 public universities in the country. During the past few years, it has been adding accredited faculty and constructing new state-of-the-art buildings, among other things. All these new people and buildings have put pressure on the existing parking stock by increasing demand and limiting supply. To keep its infrastructure in tune with a world-class campus, the university had two choices: fund more parking or fund more and better public transportation.
It has chosen the first. The reason behind it? UF hasn’t increased its overall parking supply for at least two decades. While it has built five parking garages since 1998, the overall parking supply has remained steady at around 24,000 parking spots.
You might think that UF made the right decision when you learn that demand for parking decals has been increasing steadily. The root of the problem, however, is that faculty, staff and students who drive to campus do so because they claim that the public transportation system is unreliable. And they’re not wrong. Gainesville’s Regional Transit System has been losing ridership during the past few years due to subpar service. This year alone, it started losing drivers to transit agencies in Jacksonville and Orlando who pay their drivers more than Gainesville’s transit system does. Earlier this year, more than 20 bus routes saw service shortages due to low driver supply; The Gainesville Sun estimated this would decrease ridership by about 190,000 riders last March and April alone. While a parking shortage problem might seem important, it isn’t compared to public transportation not meeting the needs of the most vulnerable.
The estimated cost of Parking Garage XIV is $34.2 million, or $17,900 per spot, the Alligator previously reported. To put this into perspective, RTS’ entire budget for fiscal year 2018 was $33.65 million. In other words, a single parking garage is expected to cost $1 million more than the entire public transportation system costs in one year.
Exactly $1 million is what RTS will be receiving soon from the federal government to add electric buses and charging stations. Just imagine how much more RTS could do with $34 million. Faculty shuttles, dedicated bus lanes, improved bus stop shelters, electronic signage, you name it.
Gainesville, as small and compact as it is, is the perfect place to move people around efficiently, without the need for private automobiles. Just look at Archer Road, University Avenue or 13th Street during rush hour and tell me we don’t have a car problem. With traffic being almost as bad as in South Florida and Orlando, the need for better public transportation is extremely clear.
UF is not alone. Campuses across the country are trying to fix their own parking problems. The University of Virginia, for example, prohibits incoming first-year students from parking a car on campus to demonstrate that they can use other modes of transportation. Other universities are building parking structures that can be modified to suit other purposes for when autonomous mobility becomes mainstream and the need for parking becomes obsolete. Is UF doing any of these? You guessed it, no.
It isn’t about how to accommodate people’s requests for parking decals. It’s about how to make people not want parking decals in the first place. A car-centric approach for the elite will definitely create more parking and congestion problems. Investment in reliable, equitable transportation will solve the parking and congestion problems. Once UF understands this, it will truly be a top 10 public university.
Mateo Van Thienen is a UF sustainability and the built environment senior and guest columnist.
