more free public transit for ucsd

ucsd currently subsidizes several mts bus routes that connect to the campus, providing free service to staff and students on these routes. it's had an impact in reducing the number of people parking on campus, the cost of which has skyrocketed in my 10 years of working there. i currently pay $972 a year to park on the sio campus for my "B" sticker, which works fine there but is woefully lacking in spaces during the day on most parts of main campus.

i read recently that plans are in the works to make all san diego mts rail and bus routes within 15 miles of campus free by this summer (can't find the link now; this old link says by 2009). this would be a fantastic move, and begins to make sense for my commute - i could jump on the trolley at the grantville station in near fairmont ave., which has plenty of parking and is just down the hill from me. i could then take the express bus to campus from the old town transit center, where parking is tight, and sits beyond an i-8 bottleneck. maybe someday the mid-coast extension of the trolley to ucsd will be built, too... the project manager said there should be a progress report soon, in my reponse to my e-mail. unfortunately i'd need to take the cramped sio van from upper campus to sio, something i don't fit in too well, especially with laptop and gym bags.

anyway, my point is that if ucsd can afford to subsidize these routes, why can't other major employers do the same? i did a search on sdsu and usd, and neither offers free rides as far as i can tell - even though sdsu has a brand new station right on campus. it's probably too much to ask of the bankrupt city, but the county could probably afford to toss some cash to mts - the county administration building on pacific dr. is just blocks from the trolley. that would free up some more spots for the parks that are supposed to replace the parking lots there, which we've been hearing about for years.

maybe i'm missing something, but it seems that employers could be doing more to support public transit, especially with high gas prices straining people's budgets. kudos to ucsd for leading the way on this one, along with their other sustainability efforts. i'm proud to work for a university that's taking action on these issues rather than just talking about it at feel-good conferences.