OSU transportation strategy aims to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from commuting to Corvallis campus

Feb. 8, 2021

CORVALLIS, Ore. – Oregon State University is undertaking a sustainable transportation strategy for its Corvallis campus with the goal of reducing drive-alone trips to campus by students and employees by one-third by 2030.

An estimated 30% of the university’s Corvallis employees and students arrive on campus by driving alone, said Meredith Williams, director of the university’s transportation services department. The university’s “2030 Sustainable Transportation Strategy: a Transportation Demand Management Plan” aims to lower that percentage.

“To achieve this goal of reducing single-occupancy vehicle trips drive-alone trips, the plan identifies 15 actions to be completed over the next 10 years,” Williams said. “The actions follow a conceptual framework called the Four C’s: Cost, Convenience, Concrete and Culture. This framework acknowledges that the transportation choices people make are the result of many different factors, including how much a trip costs, how long it takes, how safe it feels, or even how normal it is among our peer group.”

Example actions within the strategy include investments in improved Corvallis area biking and walking connections to campus, increased transit service and expanding carpool matching services. Funding for the 15 actions in the strategy is not yet determined, and ongoing work is occurring to refine the prioritization and implementation of these investments.

“These actions respond to the diverse transportation needs of OSU students and employees and support individual flexibility and daily choice in commuting,” Williams said. “Even occasional choices to work remotely, carpool, bike or take the bus will have powerful collective results. This plan was developed with five key OSU values in mind: bold climate action, good neighborhood relations, equity in access, and careful stewardship of state land and financial resources.  

“In developing the plan, OSU mapped anonymous student and employee home addresses and discovered there are more opportunities for increased carpooling, biking and transit use,” Williams said.

To view the sustainable transportation strategy visit: transportation.oregonstate.edu/STS.

General OSU

About Oregon State University: As one of only three land, sea, space and sun grant universities in the nation, Oregon State serves Oregon and the world by working on today’s most pressing issues. Our nearly 38,000 students come from across the globe, and our programs operate in every Oregon county. Oregon State receives more research funding than all of the state’s comprehensive public universities combined. At our campuses in Corvallis and Bend, marine research center in Newport, OSU Portland Center and award-winning Ecampus, we excel at shaping today’s students into tomorrow’s leaders.

Story By

Sean Nealon, 541-737-0787, [email protected]

Source

Meredith Williams, 541-737-0673, [email protected]

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