More students and faculty are making their way to

campus each day than ever before. While some walk or bike, others

must ride a bus or drive to their destination. Currently, commuter

lots located at the Iowa State Center serve students, faculty and

guests of the university free of charge. While this complimentary

service is ideal for most, it may no longer be financially

feasible.

The free commuter lots are managed by the Iowa State

Center, the Athletic Department and the Department of Public Safety

parking division. Over the past year, the DPS parking division

spent approximately $310,000 to fund the lots.

“Last year about $50,000 was spent on maintaining the

lots through snow removable, crack filling, line painting and seal

coating, with no revenue brought it,” said ISU Parking Director

Mark Miller.

Additionally, the DPS parking division spends about

$260,000 in order to help fund the cost of CyRide’s Orange

route.

“Many people perceive that the student fees for

CyRide pay to fund the Orange route, however we help subsidize the

cost to run the Orange route through the commuter lot,” Miller

said.

With the high operating cost and no revenue being

brought in, the Transportation Advisory Council has been asked to

look in to the implementation a fee for those who park in these

commuter lots.

The Transportation Advisory Council consists of

student representatives from each college, a variety of faculty

members and members of the GSB. Thomas Stout, chairman of the

Transportation Advisory Council, said the council is looking into

the issue and how each representatives constituents feel about it.

The council will then make a recommendation to the vice president

of business and finance as to what they feel is best.

“We will make the decision around the first of the

year,” Stout said.

Currently, CyRide’s Orange route is the busiest route

in the state of Iowa, serving about 10,000 riders each day. Of that

10,000, approximately 6,000 riders come from the commuter lot.

Sheri Kyras, director of CyRide, believes that it is

difficult to know what the impact of implementing a charge would

be.

“There is a possibility that students, faculty and

staff will choose not to drive to the lot, but instead ride a route

near their home. CyRide would need to monitor all routes and could

potentially need to increase the number of buses on other routes to

accommodate this ridership shift.”

Kyras also reported that the Orange route saw an

increase of ridership in September of 22.6 percent from the

previous year.

Senior Megan Meis utilizes the free commuter lots

about once week, riding the Orange route to campus.

“I would be upset if the university implemented a fee

for the commuter lots,” Meis said. “If a fee were implemented, I

would avoid using the commuter lot, unless I found it absolutely

necessary.”

GSB Senator Anna Fox, who represents students living

off campus, said, “I think it would be negative to implement a fee

for the commuter lots, especially since it would affect many

non-traditional students and commuters who are already paying for

gas or other transportation to get to campus.”

Aside from the lots at the Iowa State Center, other

commuter lots located on campus require a fee to park. A permit to

park in the lot near the Molecular Biology Building for example

costs parkers $111 each year and is currently full.

As the issue concerning the free commuter lots is

still being examined, it remains unclear as to what its parking

fees would be if any were to be implemented.