Free or near-free parking on the outskirts of campus, bus-only sections of Curtin Road, and a pedestrian mall on parts of Shortlidge Road are Office of Physical Plant suggestions for changes in transportation.
OPP's transportation plan for University Park seeks to create "intermodal transportation" on campus, which means combining mass transit, walking and biking while still making the campus accessible by car.
OPP will give a presentation on the plan and have a question-and-answer session to gain student input at noon Monday in Alumni Hall of the HUB-Robeson Center.
Just as transportation departments count cars to decide on road improvements, OPP counted pedestrian crossings at the intersection of Shortlidge Road and Pollock Road for about eight hours in one day. They counted about 23,000 crossings and some near misses between pedestrians and cars.
"It's a huge number of pedestrians, and that's another reason for this strategy," Gordon Turow, director of campus planning and design, said. "It's pedestrian safety."
The proposed changes would be the biggest shift in campus transportation systems since Allen Street became the vehicle-free Pattee Mall in the early 1900s.
"We have a condition on campus that I think can be improved," said Eliza Pennypacker, who works with OPP's campus planning and design office. "We have congested roadways; we have transit that is not as efficient as it can be because buses get stuck behind other vehicles."
Monday will have the first of at least four meetings and presentations meant to give information about the proposed project and gain input from the community. OPP has already been working with the borough of State College and the Centre Area Transportation Authority.
"I know everybody's so busy with school coming to an end, but hopefully we'll have a good group," Turow said. "I hope people will be forthright in offering their recommendations and suggestions."
Turow said he gives out his e-mail address regularly in hopes that people will respond with their ideas for the project, and he has already received some feedback.
Plans are in preliminary stages and are flexible, Turow said.
"None of this is really a done deal. That's why we're having the public meetings," OPP spokesman Paul Ruskin said.
Many similar plans are being implemented in areas where traffic problems are terrible, Turow said, and this plan could prevent Penn State from experiencing similar problems.
"This idea is not a new one nationally. Many, many campuses all over the country have taken the steps that we want to take," Pennypacker said.
The HUB Plaza, which will be created this summer, will work in conjunction with the transportation plan. The plaza will include seating and a large water feature, and it will be a "pedestrian-first" area. The water feature will have a stage-type section where people can address a crowd or musicians can perform, Turow said.
Turow said he hopes the meeting will dispel rumors that OPP wants the campus to be car-free and will answer questions students may have.
"It really is the biggest opportunity we've ever had to improve the campus transportation system," Ruskin said, "and the underlying cause of the whole thing is student safety."
