Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 51.12
Liaison Matthew Williams
Submission Date June 30, 2017
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.0

University of Florida
OP-21: Support for Sustainable Transportation

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 1.88 / 2.00 Liz Storn
Program Coordinator
Office of Sustainability
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Does the institution provide secure bicycle storage (not including office space), shower facilities, and lockers for bicycle commuters?:
No

A brief description of the facilities for bicycle commuters:

UF offers shower facilities in buildings throughout campus for bicycle commuters and a few of these have lockers. We do not have a location designed for indoor bicycle storage, although employees may store their bicycles indoors with their supervisor's permission.


Does the institution provide short-term bicycle parking (e.g. racks) within 50 ft (15 m) of all occupied, non-residential buildings and make long-term bicycle storage available within 330 ft (100 m) of all residence halls (if applicable)?:
Yes

A brief description of the bicycle parking and storage facilities:

Yes, we have bicycle racks within 50 feet of nearly every building on campus (both residential and non-residential). There is no time limit for bike storage, so we consider those both short and long-term bike parking/storage.


Does the institution have a “complete streets” or bicycle accommodation policy (or adhere to a local community policy) and/or have a continuous network of dedicated bicycle and pedestrian paths and lanes?:
Yes

A brief description of the bicycle/pedestrian policy and/or network:

Bicycling is incorporated into planning on campus through the Master Plan and Sustainability Implementation Plans for Transportation. Both include promoting bicycling on campus, including infrastructure and education/outreach. Showers and bicycle racks are included in all plans for new buildings on campus. http://www.facilities.ufl.edu/planning/cmp/index.php


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:

We have a departmental bicycle program for faculty & staff on campus by request. There are over 40 bikes currently in use by departments, an the Office of Sustainability provides maintenance on request. Additionally, we have a student bike rental program that allows students to rent a bike for a semester or year. 100 bikes are rented out for Fall 2015 and Spring 2016, and the program will double for Fall 2016.
http://bikes.ufl.edu/


Is the institution certified as a Bicycle Friendly University by the League of American Bicyclists (U.S.) or under a similar third party certification covering non-motorized transportation?:
No

A brief description of the certification, including date certified and level:
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Does the institution offer free or reduced price transit passes and/or operate a free campus shuttle for commuters?:
Yes

A brief description of the mass transit program(s), including availability, participation levels, and specifics about discounts or subsidies offered (including pre-tax options):

Gainesville's Regional Transit System partners with the University's Student Government in order to provide free transportation to students, faculty and staff around campus as throughout Gainesville. The majority of RTS routes serve campus and student residential areas surrounding campus.

RTS provides more than 10 million rides a year- and a number of days of record ridership have occurred in 2012-13.

Additionally, Gotcha Ride is an eco-friendly, 100% battery powered transportation service that provides free rides for students and faculty. Gotcha Ride currently has five specially-designed vehicles currently operating on the University of Florida campus, each of which can safely accommodate up to 5 passengers.


Does the institution offer a guaranteed return trip (GRT) program to regular users of alternative modes of transportation?:
Yes

A brief description of the GRT program:

The Emergency Ride Home Program allows participants in the Carpool Program to leave campus in the event of an unexpected personal or family emergency. A member of the TAPS or UFPD staff will drive you home in an official vehicle, or TAPS will reimburse you for cab fare home upon submission of a valid receipt, as approved by TAPS (please obtain cab fare approval prior to 4:00 PM).


Does the institution participate in a car/vanpool or ride sharing program and/or offer reduced parking fees or preferential parking for car/vanpoolers?:
Yes

A brief description of the carpool/vanpool program:

The Carpool Program encourages eligible University of Florida and Shands faculty and staff members to share the ride to and from campus. Each two-person Carpool group is assigned to a reserved carpool area for parking. Carpool decals will not be honored in any other decal-restricted area. http://www.parking.ufl.edu/subpages/carpool.html

Additionally, Zimride allows students, faculty and staff to set up their own carpools to fit their commuting needs by posting a ride on Zimride. This is a great opportunity to split the cost of travel to and from University of Florida. Save through splitting the costs of a parking permit, gas, tolls and car maintenance. http://www.zimride.com/ufl


Does the institution participate in a car sharing program, such as a commercial car-sharing program, one administered by the institution, or one administered by a regional organization?:
Yes

A brief description of the car sharing program:

UF offers the ZipCar carsharing program on campus. ZipCar automobiles have reserved spots throughout campus for both student and faculty/staff access. http://www.zipcar.com/ufl


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

A brief description of the electric vehicle recharging stations:

Electric vehicle recharging stations are available at J. Wayne Reitz Union Welcome Center parking garage and the Shepart Broad Building


Does the institution offer a telecommuting program for employees as a matter of policy or as standard practice?:
Yes

A brief description of the telecommuting program:

The practice of working at an approved alternate location instead of physically traveling to a central workplace is a work alternative that University of Florida supervisors may offer to employees when such requests meets the eligibility criteria established by the University of Florida’s Alternative Work Location Policy and when such working arrangements would benefit both the organization and employees, resources can accommodate the requests, and supervisory discretion allows for the employees to work at alternate locations. http://hr.ufl.edu/wp-content/uploads/forms/recruitment/alternate.pdf


Does the institution offer a condensed work week option for employees as a matter of policy or as standard practice?:
Yes

A brief description of the condensed work week program:

Modified work schedules, within the defined workweek, may be established at the discretion of management and require appropriate vice presidential approval. http://hr.ufl.edu/manager-resources/recruitment-staffing/recruitment-resources/recruitment-policies/modified-work-schedule/

Some UF programs, such as the graduate business school operate 4 day schedules year-round. Many faculty choose to have a 2 or 3 day teaching schedule and telecommuting is common with IT staff on campus.


Does the institution have incentives or programs to encourage employees to live close to campus?:
No

A brief description of the incentives or programs to encourage employees to live close to campus:
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Does the institution have other incentives or programs to encourage more sustainable modes of transportation and reduce the impact of student and employee commuting?:
Yes

A brief description of other sustainable transportation initiatives and programs:

Campus Cab taxi service provides free point-to-point transportation for University of Florida Faculty and Staff on the Main Campus, East Campus, and some UF facilities in Alachua County.

The Student Nighttime Auxiliary Patrol (SNAP) was implemented in 1976 to provide safe, nighttime transportation on the University of Florida campus. The ""buddy system"" has long been recognized as a means of enhancing personal safety and security. SNAP provides an on-call ""buddy"" ready to escort university students, staff and visitors.


The website URL where information about the institution’s sustainable transportation program(s) is available:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.