Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 53.92
Liaison Patricia Huynh
Submission Date Oct. 26, 2021

STARS v2.2

University of Waterloo
OP-16: Commute Modal Split

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 4.20 / 5.00 Mat Thijssen
Sustainability Manager
Sustainability Office
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Total full-time equivalent student enrollment:
35,875

Full-time equivalent of employees:
6,149

Part 1. Student commute modal split

Has the institution gathered data about student commuting behavior?:
Yes

Total percentage of students that use more sustainable commuting options as their primary mode of transportation:
91

A brief description of the method(s) used to gather data about student commuting:
Data was collected as part of a joint employee and student commuting survey in 2018 through the Region of Waterloo’s TravelWise program. The survey was distributed to the entire student population, and received over 700 responses to ensure a reasonable sample size. Students were asked information about their method of travel to the campus over the past five days, as well as their primary mode. Although the primary vs past-week modal split differed slightly, it was largely within the “sustainable transportation” categories (i.e. due to seasonal variation between transit or cycling), and the differences were within the margin of error of the survey findings. The survey took place in the fall to avoid any significant seasonal bias. The same survey was also completed in fall 2020, although the data was not included here because of COVID restrictions requiring primarily remote working created conditions that were not likely to be representative going forward.

Part 2. Employee commute modal split

Has the institution gathered data about employee commuting behavior?:
Yes

Total percentage of employees that use more sustainable commuting options as their primary mode of transportation:
43

A brief description of the method(s) used to gather data about employee commuting:
The survey was distributed to the entire employee population, and received over 550 responses to ensure a reasonable sample size. Employees were asked information about their method of travel to the campus over the past five days, as well as their primary mode. Although the primary vs past-week modal split differed slightly, it was largely within the “sustainable transportation” categories (i.e. due to seasonal variation between transit or cycling), and the differences were within the margin of error of the survey findings. The survey took place in the fall to avoid any significant seasonal bias. The same survey was also completed in fall 2020, although the data was not included here because of COVID restrictions requiring primarily remote working created conditions that were not likely to be representative going forward.

Optional Fields 

Percentage of students and employees that use the following as their primary mode of transportation:
Percentage of students (0-100) Percentage of employees (0-100)
Single-occupancy vehicle 9 56
Zero-emissions vehicle 0 ---
Walk, cycle, or other non-motorized mode 43 15
Vanpool or carpool 4 16
Public transport or campus shuttle 36 9
Motorcycle, motorized scooter/bike, or moped 0 0
Distance education / telecommute 6 3

Website URL where information about student or employee commuting is available:
---

Additional documentation to support the submission:
---

Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
---

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.