Cal U institutes paid parking on campus
CALIFORNIA – New construction on the California University of Pennsylvania campus, including the 6,000 seat convocation center, has meant a reduction of parking on the main campus and the institution of paid parking throughout the facility. Angela Burrows, vice president of university relations, said the university has ramped up its shuttle service from Roadman Park and the park-and-ride lot to the main campus to better accommodate commuters.
“We will have five full-size buses as part of a shuttle service between Roadman and main campus. They are going to run every 10 minutes during peak hours in the morning and late afternoon and every 15 minutes during off-peak hours,” Burrows said.
Burrows said that 700 parking spaces were eliminated by the construction on the main campus, with an equal number of spaces added to the Roadman lot.
In addition, a new parking garage on the main campus will provide 660 parking spaces.
“Visitors will have parking available in the parking garage. About two-thirds of the garage will be hourly and daily parking,” Burrows said.
Burrows said that students who are student teaching and only on campus one day a week will most likely opt to pay the daily rate instead of getting a pass for the semester. Parking in the River and Roadman lots is $175 per semester or $300 per academic year. All other main campus lots and the parking garage, known as tier 1 parking, are $250 per semester or $400 for the academic year. Reserved parking in the various lots and the garage is $400 per semester or $700 per academic year.
Radio frequency identification (RFID) tags, similar to the Easy Pass system used on the Pennsylvania Turnpike, will replace the traditional parking stickers.
“Those people with handicapped placards, their RFID card will be universal, meaning they can park in any handicapped space on campus,” Burrows said.
Burrows said the lots are not being oversold and, other than the handicapped tags, each pass is for a specific parking lot.
Two parking enforcement officers will use Smart cars to get around campus, enforcing the parking regulations.
Burrows said applicants for parking passes were prioritized, with faculty and staff first, followed by commuter students and then residential students. Students living at Vulcan Village have parking provided with their apartment rent at the apartments, with access to the free shuttles.
Public transit provided by the Mid Mon Valley Transit Authority provides access from the campus to places like Pittsburgh, Charleroi and the stores in Rostraver Township.
Fayette Area Coordinated Transportation (FACT) also provides a connection from Uniontown and Brownsville to the shuttle service at the park and ride lot.
“We’re also promoting the use of Zipcar, so students who don’t need to have a car on campus can use a Zipcar,” Burrows said.
Zipcar is a membership rental service that provides vehicles for short periods of time without having to go to a rental office. Burrows said at least two cars will be available on the campus.