Overall Rating Gold - expired
Overall Score 70.57
Liaison Kelsey Beal
Submission Date Dec. 14, 2020

STARS v2.2

Indiana University Indianapolis
OP-17: Support for Sustainable Transportation

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 1.00 / 1.00 Andrew McGee
Associate Director TDM & Space Management
Parking & Transportation Services
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Does the institution have a bicycle-sharing program or participate in a local bicycle-sharing program?:
Yes

A brief description of the bicycle sharing program:
Indiana Pacers Bikeshare is a public bike share program, maintained and operated by Indianapolis Cultural Trail Inc. Pacers Bikeshare’s downtown-focused network includes 50 stations and 525 bikes. Bikes are accessible 24/7. User fees range by type (annual memberships at $125/year and by the minute rates (similar to shared mobility company pricing) and can be adjusted for those of limited means. Pacers Bikeshare stations on or near the IUPUI campus include: across the street from the Campus Center, and one station outside the Gateway parking garage, at the intersection of Michigan Street and Barnhill Drive, at the intersection of Michigan Street and White River Parkway, at Eskenazi Health and White River State Park just south of Wabash Street.For more details: https://www.pacersbikeshare.org/

Does the institution participate in a car sharing program?:
Yes

None
A brief description of the car sharing program:
The IUPUI campus features one car-sharing program. The Zipcar program offers the IUPUI community a variety of cars on demand, by the hour or the day. There are two Zipcar pick-up/drop-off locations on campus.

Does the institution offer preferential parking or other incentives for fuel efficient vehicles?:
Yes

A brief description of the incentives for fuel efficient vehicles:
In association with our LEED Buildings, we do offer designated spaces for fuel-efficient vehicle parking as space and location allows. Current location example is at University Hall, the campus administration building.

Does the institution have one or more Level 2 or Level 3 electric vehicle recharging stations that are accessible to student and employee commuters?:
Yes

None
A brief description of the electric vehicle recharging stations:
Although BlueIndy suspended operations in Indianapolis this past Spring, the stations are still available for general use as recharging stations. The City of Indianapolis is seeking alternate operators for all stations located in downtown Indianapolis.

There are currently six EV charging stations on campus that are only available for specific department use; E&T, Campus Facilities and Parking Services maintenance vehicles only. We currently do not have any stations available for general public use.

Does the institution have incentives or programs to encourage employees to live close to campus?:
Yes

None
A brief description of the incentives or programs to encourage employees to live close to campus:
IUPUI is among a select group of businesses to participate in Indianapolis’ inaugural Anchor Housing program, offered through the Indianapolis Neighborhood Housing Partnership (INHP) and the Indy Chamber. This program offers qualified full-time employees financial assistance to help purchase a home or repair the exterior of a home in select neighborhoods around the IUPUI campus. University employees who want to purchase a new home or make exterior repairs to their current house can now take advantage of financial assistance in three more neighborhoods: Joining portions of Near West are portions of Riverside, Ransom Place and River West.

The Anchor Housing program is a pilot program that launched in 2016 in partnership with the Indy Chamber and the Indianapolis Neighborhood Housing Partnership and was available to eligible IUPUI employees thru December 31, 2019. https://news.iu.edu/stories/2019/10/iupui/inside/24-anchor-housing-program-apply-before-end-of-year-help-down-payment-repair.htm

Does the institution have other programs or initiatives to encourage more sustainable modes of transportation and/or reduce the impact of student and employee commuting?:
Yes

A brief description of other programs or initiatives to encourage more sustainable modes of transportation and/or reduce the impact of student and employee commuting:
The following are other programs or initiatives that IUPUI has in place to support sustainable transportation: https://parking.iupui.edu/transportation/bike-iupui.html

The university has one indoor bike storage facility in the Tower Garage. Access is free to any IUPUI student, faculty or staff member who registers a bicycle, which is also free to do.

Numerous buildings across campus offer showers and storage facilities, including:
- HITS: storage and showers
- Walther Hall: storage and showers
- Rotary: storage and showers
- Lockefield Village: storage and showers
- Hine Hall: storage
- University Hall: showers
- NIFS (campus recreation partner): facilities for bicycle commuters on a membership basis which includes a kit locker, shower access and sauna, whirlpool, and steam room access. More information: https://www.nifs.org/membership-at-nifs/day-pass-short-term-memberships

Additionally, there are three bicycle maintenance stations for bike fixes located outside of the following buildings:
- Campus Center
- Hine Hall
- Business/SPEA

The IUPUI campus features 109 outdoor bike racks:
https://parking.iupui.edu/parking/permit_map_bikes.pdf

The university has one indoor bike storage facility in the Tower Garage. Access is free to any IUPUI student, faculty or staff member who registers a bicycle, which is also free to do.

The IUPUI Master Plan contains a detailed description of the campus efforts to incorporate bicycle and foot traffic into the campus culture. Some of these features include overhead skywalks, incorporation of the Indianapolis Cultural Trail, bicycle lanes, and improvements in landscape (including tree coverage) to make pedestrian areas more appealing. Master Plan can be accessed here: http://masterplan.indiana.edu/iupui/IUPUI_Master_Plan.pdf

Indiana University has a policy for bicycles and other personal conveyance vehicles, outlining access to and egress from university facilities must not be impeded by obstacles. In addition, personal conveyance vehicles must be operated, parked, and stored in a safe manner for the operator as well as for those around them. Full policy can be found here:
https://policies.iu.edu/policies/fin-ins-13-bicycles-scooters-other-personal-conveyance-vehicles/index.html

IUPUI and IndyGo (Indianapolis' local public transit corp.) have partnered to offer current IUPUI students with an ""S pass"" that allows students to ride any of IndyGo’s 27 fixed routes including the Red Line at a discounted rate. IUPUI students may obtain an S Pass for $30 (half the standard rate) at the parking office located in the Vermont Street Parking Garage. The partnership between IUPUI and IndyGo was established to provide students with an affordable and sustainable mode of transportation to school, home and work. The IndyGo Red Line launched in September 2019. The Red Line is one component of the larger Marion County Transit Plan. Phase 1 of the Red Line Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project runs from Broad Ripple through downtown Indy to the University of Indianapolis, connecting several neighborhoods, major employers and cultural institutions with frequent, comfortable rapid transit service. The IUPUI campus shuttle service provides a connection to the Red Line as a convenient way for students, staff and faculty to get to/from campus utilizing mass transit.

IUPUI Police offers SafeWalk, an escort program for all IUPUI students and staff. This service is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at no cost. More information: https://iupd.iupui.edu/index.html

The university Parking and Transportation Services also offers courtesy services to all IUPUI students and staff. Service provided include jump starts, flat tire changes, and gasoline assistance. This service is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. More information: https://parking.iupui.edu/vehicle-assistance/index.html

IUPUI is partnered with the Central Indiana Regional Transportation Authority (CIRTA) in their Commuter Connect program. The Commuter Connect program teams with central Indiana employers to find alternate transportation options for their employees. These options include carpooling, vanpooling, transit, biking, and walking.

IUPUI Parking encourages faculty and staff to join other employees to carpool to work through their carpool program, offering a 50% discount and ten 1-day temporary parking permits to each member of the carpool. To learn more: https://parking.iupui.edu/transportation/carpool.html

IUPUI has also partnered with Central Indiana Regional Transportation Authority (CIRTA) and their Commuter Connect program to offer their Emergency Ride Home benefit. Emergency Ride Home (ERH) is a service provided by Commuter Connect for all qualified carpoolers, vanpoolers, walkers, bikers, and transit riders working for the university. More information at: https://commuterconnect.us/employees/

The university has guidelines on telecommuting in non-emergency situations, emergency situations, and for off-campus positions. The university does allow telecommuting in non-emergency situations and for off-campus employees when requested and upon reaching a written agreement, so long as the employee can or must perform their responsibilities remotely. Telecommuting is also allowed for employees whose responsibilities can be performed outside the traditional office setting during emergency or adverse situations such as due to weather, a pandemic, or an unsafe working environment. For full guidelines: http://hr.iu.edu/relations/telecommute.html

University polices allow for alternative work arrangements in which staff employees work full time, but in different configurations of hours. Any Staff employee may request to work an alternative work schedule unless the employee's position is excluded either by the operating unit due to operating needs or by university policy. Employees must simply submit a written request to their supervisor and so long as quantity, quality, and timeliness of employee work be maintained, reasonable efforts will be made to accommodate such requests. Such arrangements are not only acceptable, but a potentially positive way to meet the childcare, family care, and other personal needs of employees while still permitting departments to operate in an efficient manner. For full policy: https://policies.iu.edu/policies/hr-06-10-alternative-work-schedules/index.html"

Optional Fields 

Website URL where information about the institution’s support for sustainable transportation is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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