Thompson Rivers University
OP-21: Support for Sustainable Transportation

TRU has storage, shower, and lockers for bicyclists, including a new covered bicycle shelter next to a new bike repair stand (which includes tools and air pump). There are also several other bicycle racks strategically placed around the campus.

There is a bike rack within 50 ft of all occupied, non-residentail buildings. Residences are not within our scope for this report.

All TRU paths around the entire campus are multi-use paths. Furthermore, the vehicle service road that encircles the whole campus has a dedicated multi-use shoulder that cyclists can use.

The TRU Office of Environment and Sustainability has an Electric Bike Sharing Program, whereby any TRU student, staff or faculty member can borrow the e-bike free of charge for one week (after signing a waiver). The purpose of doing this is to let people get a feel for riding an e-bike so that they're sure it suits them before spending money on one. There is one bike in the program.

TRU Student Union UPASS - The TRUSU UPASS is an unlimited transit pass for the City of Kamloops transit system, provided to every student enrolled at TRU in Kamloops. The UPASS allows riders to get to and from classes, work, school, and elsewhere at a low cost--both financially and environmentally. The UPASS also provides a 50% discount for a monthly membership to the Tournament Capital Centre and free access to the Canada Games Aquatic Centre. Employee ProPass - The ProPass is a permanent photo ID bus pass purchased through the TRU payroll deduction program, which is available to staff & faculty of TRU. The cost is $44.00 a month and will provide a savings of $108/year compared to purchasing regular monthly transit passes. Participants are required to sign up for a minimum of four months.

Any TRU student or staff member that uses alternative modes of transportation and needs to get somewhere in Kamloops due to an unforseen circumstance (emergency, drastic weather, etc.) will get reimbursed the taxi fare to get to their destination.

TRU’s Student Union, in cooperation with the Canadian Federation of Students, offers a Rideshare carpooling program, where users can post an online post about either offering to give someone a ride or a request for a ride. TRU also has a well-used carpool program, that lets users pay substantially less for long-term parking spots, which are located in very convenient spaces around campus.

Fom early on in its development, members of the TRU Office of Environment and Sustainability have helped in various ways to get the new local car-share program off the ground. The Interior Car Shar Coop, known as InCar, has a board of directors, manager, members, and bank account, and is in the final stages of purchasing its first car. http://www.kamloopscarshare.ca/

There are eight level 2 electric vehicle charging stations on campus that are free to use by anyone.

In accordance with the TRU/CUPE Collective Agreement, CUPE employees may, where feasible, work a compressed work week. The compressed work week, in general, consists of working an additional half hour over a period of 14 days. The 15th day in a three week period is considered a rest day.

Partial Parking Stall Program - Drivers who only park their vehicle at TRU for a set amount of days during the five school days per week (they can decide if it will be 1, 2, 3 or 4 days), and then take alternative modes of transportation during the other day(s), will only have to pay the commensurate amount of parking fees (ie, if they only park 2 of the 5 days, then they only pay 2/5 of the weekly parking fee). Free Moped Parking - Anyone parking a moped at TRU, can do so for free. The program may be expanded to include all 250 cc or smaller motorcycles as well. Bike Shelter and Repair Stand - TRU installed a covered bike shelter to lock up bikes, and a repair stand where you can do simple repairs/maintenance with provided tools and an air pump. Bicycle Events - TRU is an active participant in events that promote bicycle commuting and riding (Kamloops Bike To Work Week, and the Multiple Sclerosis Kamloops River Ride). Sustainability Grant Fund - TRU’s Sustainability Grant Fund received numerous proposals for its inaugural intakes in 2013. The successful applicants received funding to implement projects that not only reduce GHG emissions, but foster environmental literacy and campus community engagement, advance applied research, and demonstrate the viability of sustainability technologies. The $100,000 fund is available to any students, staff of faculty members in the TRU community who successfully proposes a project that advances sustainability at TRU. The SGF was established to improve TRU’s operational environmental community, and was created through an increase in campus parking fees. The fee increase has also significantly reduced single occupancy vehicles entering campus, resulting in less congestion and GHG emissions. Electric Vehicle Suitability Assessment program - In the spring of 2013 TRU received financial assistant from the Fraser Basin Council to install 10 Electric Vehicle (EV) charging stations at the 2 main campuses (Kamloops and Williams Lake). That fall TRU was selected by the Fraser Basin Council as one of only four organizations across BC to participate in an Electric Vehicle Suitability Assessment pilot study. The EV suitability pilot studied the duty cycle of TRU fleet vehicles to determine if existing vehicles could be replaced with comparable EV or hybrid vehicles. The study identified significant financial savings and reduced GHG emissions associated with replacing existing fossil fuel powered vehicles with EV or hybrids. The study will act as a guide for TRU’s Facilities managers when they are replacing and updating TRU’s existing fleet vehicles in the coming years. Electric Golf Carts - Electric golf carts encourage staff to avoid the use of fossil-fuel powered vehicles when moving about campus. Although still quite new, a free electric bike loan-out program has been a popular alternative used by staff to commute to and from work, in some cases as far as 20 kilometres away. Through Plug-in BC, TRU was approved for funding for eight electric vehicle charging stations. Installation of those stations at both the Kamloops and Williams Lake campuses is now complete.