Survey shows citizens willing to pay to park

Measure may encourage public transit use

If the bus between Gunnison and Crested Butte, which is currently free, were to cost $1.75 next year, would it still retain a high number of daily passengers?

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Would more people ride the bus if they had to pay to park in the town of Crested Butte?
With the results of a recent transportation survey, the Gunnison Valley Rural Transportation Authority is closer to answering questions such as these.
The survey was intended to examine the public’s perception on several key transportation issues in the valley, such as parking in Crested Butte, reducing traffic along Gothic Road, and improving public transportation for Crested Butte South. The survey was held in an online format between June 24 and August 10.
Nearly 70 percent of the survey’s 53 respondents indicated they would support paying for parking in the town of Crested Butte to encourage the use of public transportation. Forty-three percent of the respondents were Crested Butte residents.
The survey was conducted as part of the development of an updated valley-wide transportation plan, scheduled for completion in October. The RTA discussed the results of the survey and the progress on the transportation plan during a meeting on August 15.
Charlier Associates transportation planner Jacob Riger said one of the goals of the plan was to reduce personal vehicle use, and increase the use of public transportation. “What is the most cost-efficient way to get people out of their cars?” he asked.
Some of the solutions the RTA has discussed are installing an intercept parking lot just south of Crested Butte, or a Park and Ride in Crested Butte South.
One potential solution the board discussed at length would be a different way of managing parking in the north end of the valley. RTA board member Skip Berkshire said, “In Mt. Crested Butte, the hope is that guests will drive there, park, and leave their car (during their stay). There has to be a carrot for that. There has to be a nice place to park.”
The survey results showed that the most critical parking issue for Crested Butte residents was the number of people who park their vehicle in town but spend their time in Mt. Crested Butte.
Berkshire said, “The real problem is the surge from Crested Butte South and Gunnison and folks coming up and parking at the Four-way (in Crested Butte) and riding the bus.”
RTA director Scott Truex said, “The number of cars coming out of Crested Butte South is huge.”
Ideas to increase public transportation use in Crested Butte South have included a dedicated circulator bus for the subdivision, and a Park and Ride. RTA board member Jim Starr said the idea of the circulator bus around Crested Butte South, as a link to public transportation along Highway 135, would be tough to implement due to the length of time it would take to travel around the subdivision.
Riger agreed. “It’s not set up in a way that’s productive for transit… You have these sort of lollipop dead-end cul-de-sac-type streets.” Riger said the reason most people use their cars is because of the perception that it’s “free,” even though the trip burns several dollars’ worth of gas. If there were a Park and Ride near the subdivision, people would still be inclined to drive the rest of the way, he said.
Riger said to get more Crested Butte South residents to use public transportation, “You have to tighten down parking at the destination end.”
Truex agreed. “No matter how much improvement you put into Crested Butte South, it’s not going to work until you put the hammer down in Crested Butte,” he said.
The survey results indicate that people would support parking fees in the town of Crested Butte as a way to encourage more use of public transportation. Forty percent of the respondents did not support any fee increase at all.
Starr said a parking fee in town, especially along Elk Avenue, was tough for some businesses to consider. “It’s difficult for Crested Butte to really tighten down on their parking because there’s the prevailing business concern that they need people to park in front of their shops,” Starr said.
Another component to the discussion was the RTA’s free bus service between Gunnison and Mt. Crested Butte. As fuel prices increase, the RTA has considered adding a fare to ride the bus in order to keep the operation sustainable. Riger said transportation planners used a formula to estimate what effect fare price changes have on ridership. In the Gunnison Valley’s case, “A 10 percent increase in fare represents a 4 percent decrease in ridership,” he said. Riger presented a matrix showing different fare prices and corresponding daily rider numbers.
From 25 cents up to $1.75 in increasing fares, the RTA would also see an increase in revenue to fund the operation (up to approximately $400 each day), based on current ridership). Past $1.75, the revenue begins to decrease, due to the decrease in riders.
Berkshire said charging a fare would only be a last-case scenario for the RTA bus. “The only reason we need to charge is because we can’t cover the cost and there’s no other way. You want to keep the fare low to get the most people on, so free.”
The 2008 Gunnison Valley Transportation Plan will give municipal and regional planners a better indication of when and where things like bus pull-offs, parking lots, pedestrian crossings, and “park and rides” should go in the valley. The study is also examining the need for more public transportation, traffic safety and trail systems, but it does not cover air travel and airlines.
In April, Gunnison County, the city of Gunnison and the towns of Crested Butte and Mt. Crested Butte agreed to split the cost of the $80,000 study and allocated funds in their respective 2008 budgets. The RTA is helping to coordinate the study.
Boulder-based Charlier and Associates, the firm the RTA has hired for the updated study, conducted the last valley-wide transportation study in 1998. The 2008 Transportation Plan should be complete in October.