Improving mobility and infrastructural connectivity on college campus for commuting students: a case study from the US

Abstract

ABSTRACT As contemporary colleges and universities continue to undergo unprecedented growth, more and more students commuting to campus face parking and physical infrastructural connectivity problems. Using the case of a US college campus, this paper identifies areas in which physical infrastructural connectivity limits students’ ability to commute to campus, either due to gaps in the network or lack of awareness of the network. Graph theory application was used to gauge the overall connectivity of the sidewalk, bike lane, and bus route networks available to students at the university. Through GIS mapping, relationships between these networks were identified, as well as gaps in these networks. In addition, a survey of students’ commuting patterns was performed to identify how students travel to campus and their overall familiarity with the alternative transportation networks. Insights from this study could enhance planning for inter-modal connectivity and make student commuting safer, more accessible, more eco-friendly, and more convenient even as the student population continues to increase.