UK Recognized for Sustainable Transportation Options

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Oct. 27, 2016) — The University of Kentucky was recently highlighted in the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education's (AASHE) 2016 Sustainable Campus Index (SCI) for its sustainability in transportation options.

UK Parking and Transportation Services (PTS) has worked steadily over the last 5 years to promote alternative transportation.

"In the past several years, PTS has greatly expanded its efforts to offer a broader menu of mobility options, particularly ones focused on incentivizing UK students and employees to shift their primary mode of transportation,” said Lance Broeking, director of Parking and Transportation Services. “It is gratifying to see these efforts rewarded, however, the benefits to the entire campus community extend well beyond that."

In 2015, Parking and Transportation Services (PTS) launched a pilot bicycle voucher program encouraging students and employees to consider alternatives to driving a vehicle to campus. In exchange for not bringing a motor vehicle to campus for the next two years, 100 qualified students and employees received a $400 voucher, redeemable at local bicycle shops. Due to the program’s tremendous success in its first year, PTS renewed the bike voucher program for 2016. This program works in tandem with Big Blue Cycles, which provides bikes to on-campus students who sign a one-year car-free commitment.

In addition, UK's BluPass partnership with Lextran allows UK students and employees to ride any Lextran route for free with their valid Wildcard ID. In its first 15 months of operation, BluPass has given more than 1,000,000 rides to students and employees. In April, UK and Lextran announced the extension of the program through June 2019.

SCI recognizes top-performing colleges and universities in 17 distinct aspects of sustainability, as measured by the Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System (STARS). The full 2016 SCI can be found here.

"These transportation initiatives boost our efforts to promote sustainability using a triple bottom line approach," said Shane Tedder, UK sustainability coordinator. "They make financial sense for individuals and the institution, promote health and safety, and reduce congestion, air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions."