U-PASS Reports
Stadium Expansion Parking Plan & Transportation Management Program
2000 Data Collection Summary
University of Washington Transportation Office
Contents
- Background
- Introduction
- Executive Summary
- Transportation Management Plan Elements
- Data Collection Methodology and Summary
- Modal Split
- Special Events Restricted Parking Zone
- Conclusion
- Appendix
Background
The Seattle City Council Resolution 27435, relating to the University of Washington Stadium Expansion Parking Plan and Transportation Management Program (TMP), requires the University and City of Seattle to collect data during each football season.
The data is used to monitor the performance of the TMP. The 1986 data collection is a baseline for comparing impacts after the stadium was expanded from 58,500 to 72,200 seats in 1987. This document summarizes the data collection for the 2000 season, and compares current figures to the figures collected during the past fourteen years.
The University of Washington hosted six football games at Husky Stadium during the 2000 season. The game dates and times were as follows:
| Date | Kickoff Time | Opponent | Game Attendance |
| September 2nd | 12:00 p.m. | Idaho | 70,117 |
| September 9th | 12:30 p.m. | Miami (Band Day) | 74,157 |
| October 7th | 7:00 p.m. | Oregon State | 73,145 |
| October 21st | 3:30 p.m. | California | 70,113 |
| November 4th | 12:00 p.m. | Arizona | 70,411 |
| November 11th | 4:00 p.m. | UCLA | 71,886 |
- free bus services from several Park & Ride lots in the region
- free bus service on selected in-city routes ("Husky Special Service")
- carpooling
- charter bus service
- bicycling
- charter boats and boat moorage services
The purpose of this document is to monitor the effectiveness of the TMP during the 2000 season. The indicators which are used for monitoring are modal split, average occupancy of each transportation mode, number of parking violation in Special Events Restricted Parking Zone, and neighborhood parking impacts.
This report consists of three main sections. First, this report explains the Transportation Management Program (TMP). Second, it details the methodology used to collect the data related to performance indicators. Finally, a discussion regarding modal split in 2000 and in previous years is included.
After fourteen years of operation, the Husky Stadium Expansion Parking Plan and Transportation Management Program continues to fulfill its primary goal of "accommodating a sellout crowd of 72,200 with less reliance on parking in the residential areas near campus." Key findings of this report are presented below:
- The average attendance in 2000 was 71,638. The average attendance in 1986 was 59,432 and was 71,790 in 1999.
- The average vehicle occupancy rate for vehicles parking on campus decreased slightly from the 1986 base year to 2.32 persons per auto. On average, 27,099 people or 37.7 percent of the game attendance in 2000 arrived by automobile. In 1986 the average number of people arriving by automobile and parking on campus or at Safeco was 27,424 people or 46 percent. In 1999 the average vehicle occupancy rate for autos was 2.3 and an average of 28,368 people or 39.5 percent of the game attendance arrived by automobile and parked on campus.
- Average occupancy for boats has increased to 11.9 people per boat. On average, approximately 3,661 people or 5.1 percent of the total game attendance in 2000 arrived by boat for each game. In 1986 the average number of people arriving by boat was 2,817 people or 4.7 percent. In 1999 the figures were 3,730 people or 5.2, with an average occupancy of 12.7.
- Transit ridership increased in 2000, with an average of 15,572 people arriving by transit each game. Overall, 22.1 percent of the game attendance rode transit en route to the games in 2000 as compared to 5,650 people or 9.5 percent in 1986. Transit ridership is up from 1999 when 14,802 people 20.0 percent of the game attendance used transit.
- During the 2000 season, an average of 48,068 people per game, or 67 percent of the average game attendance parked on campus, came by boat, arrived by transit, or arrived by charter bus. The remaining 23,570 people, or 33 percent, were either dropped-off, walked, rode a bicycle, drove a motorcycle/moped, or drove and parked in the U-District or outlying neighborhoods. In 1986, an average of 66 percent of the people in game attendance parked on campus, came by boat, by transit, or by charter bus. In 1999 there was 48,254 people or 67 percent arriving by these modes.
- The Seattle Transportation Department survey of the number of parking violations in the Special Event Restricted Parking Zone identified 115 violations in 2000 as compared to 91 violations reported in 1986 and 209 violations in 1999.
Transportation Management Plan Elements
The Transportation Management Plan for Husky football games was first implemented in 1987 to mitigate the impacts of traffic on the surrounding community. Due to the nature of large-attendance events such as football games, high volumes of people travel to specific location over a short period of time, and usually all leave at the same time (at the conclusion of the event). The TMP is in place to reduce the volume of vehicles that are used to transport fans to the event.
Transit Fare Program
One major goal of the transportation program is to encourage football game attendees to take public transportation to the stadium. All ticket-holders can ride King County Metro buses for free to the stadium on added park-and-ride service buses and the five special service routes.
Park and Ride Service
King County Metro provided special game-day bus service from eight Park & Ride lots in the region to Husky Stadium (see Figure 2). Fans were able to park for free at the park-and-ride lots, and rode the bus to Husky Stadium for free. Buses began boarding at the lots two hours prior to kickoff, and left every 20 minutes. Following the game, bus riders boarded the buses at the several locations on campus, according to their destination, for a return trip to the designated Park and Ride lots, as shown in Figure 1.
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Figure 1: Boarding Locations | Figure 2: Park and Ride Locations |
Husky Special
King County Metro added four special bus routes from downtown Seattle and Ballard to Husky Stadium during each home game. The service started one hour and forty minutes before each kickoff. The routes are shown in Figures 3-6.
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Figure 3: Downtown Service |
Figure 4: Downtown Service |
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Figure 5: Ballard Service |
Figure 6: Downtown Service |
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Figure 7: Lake City & Sand Point Service |
King County Metro also added special service on Route 75 between Lake City and Husky Stadium. One trip left Lake City 65 minutes prior to kickoff during each home game. Figure 7 shows the route for the service.
Marketing: Transportation Guide and Website
Every year a "Husky Football Transportation Guide," which provides transportation-related information, is produced and distributed. The small brochure is mailed to all season ticket holders, and to individuals who request the information. The guide provides details about the TMP elements, information about parking and post-game traffic routing, and contact information. The information is also made available on-line at the U-PASS website (hosted by the University of Washington).
Carpooling Incentives and Parking Pricing
The TMP uses a pricing system to provide financial incentives for carpooling. During the 2000 season, parking on campus cost $7.00 for vehicles with three or more persons, $10.00 for vehicles with less than three persons, $17.00 for motor homes, and $20.00 for buses. In previous years, carpool parking permits were available for groups or two or more persons. This change, requiring three rather than two people for a carpool permit has had little effect on average vehicle occupancy, as discussed later in this report. Marketing information was also used also encourage carpooling. Messages such as "Carpools save time and money are a lot more fun than going alone" were incorporated into the transportation guide.
Restricted Parking Zone
Another important element of the TMP is the Special Event Parking Zone, which limits game-day parking in Montlake community to its residents. Citations are given when non-residents park in the specified zones.
Data Collection Methodology and Summary
All person and vehicle trips and number of transports to the game via bus, boat, and charter bus are counted or estimated for each transportation mode. This survey does not count bicyclists, pedestrians, and people dropped off.
Charter Buses
Charter buses were surveyed at each game by Parking Services. A parking attendant recorded the number of buses and passengers as the parking fees were paid. Table 1 shows the number of charter buses and passengers arriving by charter bus for each game. Every year the Huskies host a "Band Day" when marching bands from area high schools travel via charter buses to Husky stadium to perform. The Miami game on September 9th was Band Day, and the numbers shown include the Band Day participants.
Table 1: Travel to Campus via Charter Buses
| Game Date | Opponent | Number of Buses | Number of Passengers |
| September 2nd | Idaho | 37 | 1,222 |
| September 9th | Miami (Band Day)* | 104 | 3,919 |
| October 7th | Oregon State | 34 | 1,199 |
| October 21st | California | 36 | 1,267 |
| November 4th | Arizona | 36 | 1,266 |
| November 11th | UCLA | 44 | 1,540 |
| Season Average | 49 | 1,736 |
* 62 band day buses are assumed to hold 40 passengers each
Transit
King County Metro counts the number of transit trips and passengers for each Husky game. The number of passengers were counted for Park & Ride Service and for Husky Special Service runs. All transit trips are estimated to be 2% of the total game attendance.
Table 2: Travel to Campus via Transit (Average)
Boats
The Intercollegiate Athletics Department (ICA) counted the number of boats at each game and provided an estimate of the number of passengers based on boat size. Specific counts were taken for those arriving by 1) charter boat; 2) boats moored at University piers and buoys near the Waterfront Activities Center; and 3) boats anchored off-shore or parked at the crew house. Table 3 provides information for each game, and the summarizes the season averages.
Table 3: Travel to Campus via Boat Trips
Vehicles
Parking services recorded the number of cars parked in each campus lot at each game. In addition, an Average Vehicle Occupancy (AVO) Survey was conducted on November 4, 2000 in order to estimate the average vehicle occupancy and person trips via cars and motor homes. The counts was conducted from 7:00am to 12:30pm. The game kick off was 12:30pm. Surveyors recorded the number of people in each car as they entered the University Washington parking facilities. Surveyors also asked drivers number of occupancy once motor homes are parked. Campus was divided into six sections: East Campus - North, East Campus - South, Main Campus, South Campus, Central Campus and West Campus. The AVO rates were then calculated for each section of campus. The AVO rates were applied to the total number of cars parked in each campus sector, as surveyed by parking services. The result is an estimate of the total number of people who arrived by auto and parked on campus for each game. The data are provided in Table 4.
Table 4: Travel to Campus via Cars Parked on Campus
Bicycles
The number of bicycles were counted for the first time in 2000 in an effort to record the use bicycle facilities on campus. On November 4th, a surveyor counted bicycles parked near Husky Stadium between 1:30pm and 2:30pm. Since the game kick-off was at 12:30pm, bicycle parking is believed to be maximized at the time of survey. The weather was partly sunny and overcast.
Bicycles were counted and the locations were recorded. It was also noted if bikes were parked on racks, of if they were parked improperly.
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Figure 8: A bicycle parked to a tree along Burke Gilman Trail |
Figure 9: A bicycle parking sign along the Burke Gilman Trail |
In the proximity of Husky Stadium, a total of 234 bicycles were counted. Ninety-seven of them were improperly parked, and locked to polls, rails, signs, and trees. Some the bikes may have been parked that day for purposes other than attending Husky game, especially at the IMA and Main Campus.
There is need for a better planning event bicycle parking program and bicycle parking information distribution. The current transportation program only places a bicycle parking sign along Burke Gilman Trail at Bloedel Hall - Burke Gilman Connection.
Burke Gilman Trail
Figure 10: Improperly parked bicycles near Husky Stadium
This is one of the main bicycle routes passing by the UW. Some bicycles were parked to rails, trees, and polls along the trail. As shown in Figure , a bicycle parking sign was placed near Bloedel Hall. In this area, there is an abundant bicycle parking capacity of 232. However, there were only twenty-one bicycles parked at this location. One likely explanation is that cyclists perceived this location to be too far to park their bicycles. Most bicycles were observed at the Burke Gilman Trail and Hec Ed Overpass: nine bikes were counted on toast rack and thirty-two bikes were parked to rails.
Health Science / Hospital Area
There were few bikes parked in Health Science/Hospital area.. NE Pacific and Montlake is probably seen as an obstacle to bicyclists. In addition, bicycle facilities in this area are not visible from streets.
Main Campus
Bicycle racks located between More Hall and Mechanical Engineering had seven bicycles parked at this location. Due to topological difference between the stadium and this site, it is not preferred parking location although there are abundance of bicycle parking at 132 spaces.
East of Montlake Blvd. (Stadium Area)
Most bicycles were parked in this area. There was not a sufficient capacity of bicycle parking for the game, as bicycle racks are placed according to normal (non-event related) demand. During this time, there was a toast rack located near Gate 8, eight Rack IIIs at Graves, and seven toast racks at IMA. The toast rack near Gate 8 was placed between planters due to construction activity at Hec Edmundson Pavilion. As a result, the rack accommodated only twenty bicycles instead of thirty.
Figure 11 provides information on the average mode split for 1986 (pre-stadium expansion), and 2000 seasons. Mode split data provides a better indication of mode usage than average vehicles occupancy because the game attendance plays a major role in the total number of people parking on campus.
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| Figure 11: Average Mode Split |
As demonstrated in Figure 11, mode choice has shifted. Transit bus use has increased substantially, and a smaller share of game attendees arrive at Husky Stadium via cars which are parked on campus.
Figure 12: Neighborhood Parking Impact Areas
The University did not receive any complaints about parking from people residing in the neighborhood impact zones in 2000, which indicates that there was not a measurable increase in parking impacts for the 2000 season. In addition, we observe that the number of people arriving to games via "total uncounted" modes was less in 2000 than the average of the years 1995-99. The "uncounted" modes are those other than on-campus parking, boats, transit, and charter bus services, and would include individuals parking in neighborhood parking zones. Thus, all indications signify that the goal to "accommodate a sell-out crowd with less reliance on parking in the residential areas near campus" has been maintained.
Special Events Restricted Parking Zone
Information used to determine the violations associated with the Special Events Restricted Parking Zone in the Montlake Community is provided by Seattle Transportation (SEATRAN). SEATRAN staff conducted a survey of illegally parked vehicles in the restricted zone during the afternoon on September 9, 2000 (Miami game). Attendance for this game was 74,157 people. A total of 115 violations were counted during the game. This was the lowest number of violations since 1986. The numbers of violations from the 1986 season through 2000 are presented in Figure 13. During the 1993 season, SEATRAN was unable to conduct the survey.
Figure 13: Number of Restricted Parking Zone Violations per game, according to year
In 2000, the Municipal Court of Seattle raised the RPZ fine amount from $28 to $44. This became effective on November 10, 2000. Conclusion
The success of the TMP in 2000 is demonstrated in the mode split data, and in the number of violations counted in the Restricted Parking Zone. The Husky Stadium Expansion Parking Plan and Transportation Management Program continues to be successful.
Table 5 summaries travel to each game during the 2000 season according to mode.
Table 5: Game Day Travel Summary
