Duke Parking and Transportation Services is preparing for about 3,300 additional people expected on campus by 2012 largely stemming form the addition of the planned Duke Cancer Center and Duke Medicine Pavilion.
In an address to the Duke Student Government Wednesday night, Sam Veraldi, director of Parking and Transportation Services, said the campus requires a new, economically sustainable plan for the department by 2012.
“Every time we build one of these really gorgeous buildings, one of the first things that goes is parking,” Veraldi said. “The new medical plaza removes 75 spaces on the LaSalle [Street] block and the new addition to the engineering facility will take a number of parking spaces away. This certifies the fact that we need to find alternatives and find ways to discourage people from [driving alone].”
The department, which currently has a $5 million deficit, also requires significant financial restructuring. PTS has been asked to stop relying on the strategic initiative funds that account for 60 percent of its budget, Veraldi said.
The changes to bus routes and schedules at the beginning of the year saved the department half a million dollars, Veraldi said. But PTS may lose half of this amount, as it plans to run buses more frequently the remainder of the year in response to student demand.
Veraldi also stressed the importance of providing substantial parking to employees to in order to continue to attract professionals and remain competitive against other North Carolina institutions.
Following Veraldi’s presentation, the Senate approved a resolution allowing PTS to e-mail the student body in the event of a major change or disturbance.
In addition to the presentation on PTS, sophomore Chris Brown spoke about a new “Taxis on Demand” service that PTS will soon make available. The service will allow students to pay for taxis from certain companies with a taxi-specific debit card, said Brown, vice president for athletics and campus services.
“It’s a niche market for the student that doesn’t have a car on campus,” Brown said. “Parents can buy the debit card, allocate to students [about] $50 to be able to take a cab from Shooters, to see a show.... It’s no cost to the University.”
In other business:
The Senate approved the 2010-2011 Duke Basketball Krzyzewskiville tenting guidelines and walk-up line policy.
The tenting guidelines generally revert to the policy that was in place two years ago. Unlike last year, students can begin tenting during Winter Break. Students can arrive on campus as early as Jan. 3 to tent. The temperature for grace has also been lowered back to 20 degrees.
“We’ve gone back to the first-come, first-serve system,” said Head Line Monitor John Reynolds, a senior. “Last year the biggest complaint we had was there was no community in K-ville... [there were] too many nights of grace.”
The Senate also passed a resolution expressing sympathy for those affected by the deaths of Tyler Clementi and Raymond Chase and encouraged the enforcement of Duke’s zero-tolerance policy for discrimination.
“We are begging them to come forth and be more vocal on this issue,” said senior Ashley Baker, an academic affairs senator.
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