The Alternative Transportation Fee Advisory Board is accepting proposals for how student fees can be spent to improve campus transportation options.
The board, which reports to the Associated Students of Colorado State University Student Fee Review Board, and recommends how student transportation fee dollars are spent on campus. It annually disperses fee dollars for infrastructure and other alternative transportation programs that benefit students.
Proposals that involve the creation or change to infrastructure projects must be reviewed by CSU Facilities Management to validate cost estimates and scheduling before they can be submitted to the board. These proposals are due to Facilities Management by Dec. 14. All types of projects, whether programs or for infrastructure, must be submitted to the Alternative Transportation Fee Advisory Board by Jan. 18.
To qualify, projects must benefit students and will be evaluated for how they:
- Enhance transportation safety
- Meet project design benchmarks such as an extended lifecycle, and construction and maintenance costs
- Projected environmental benefits.
A full list of project criteria is available on the board’s website, along with the application process and proposal form. Proposals with matching funds from other sources such as grants also will be eligible for funding consideration.
Examples infrastructure projects include bike and pedestrian infrastructure, covered or secure bike parking, enhanced or expanded transit service, transportation-sharing projects, and repairs to existing transportation infrastructure. Programs and other alternative transportation related projects are also considered and encouraged.
Last year, the fee board funded three improvements through this project proposal process: the Green Trail extension, the Mobile Spoke expansion, and SkiSU bus.
The Green Trail runs from the Shields underpass, past the south end of Moby Arena and the Rec Center, and ends at the Lory Student Center. This is a very popular trail, used by thousands of cyclists and pedestrians every day. Part of the trail was split, meaning that there were separate spaces for pedestrians and cyclists. Just west of the Rec Center, the split path merged into one small trail. This caused congestion and higher rates of accidents. The Alternative Transportation Fee Advisory Board invested in extending the split trail to the new Shields underpass through a partnership with CSU Facilities Management.
The Spoke, a living lab, is Colorado State University’s on-campus cycling maintenance and educational training center operated by students and serving university students, faculty, and staff. The Spoke works with each of their customers, sharing knowledge, techniques and best practices on bicycle maintenance, safety, and repairs. The fee board partnered with Central Receiving and Housing & Dining Services to add a mobile shop to extend the Spoke’s reach; the mobile unit has engaged with more 550 community members in its first two months of operation. Learn more about the Spoke through their website and Instagram.
Skiing and snowboarding is a significant part of Colorado culture, and many out of state students choose CSU because of the proximity to ski resorts. SkiSU provides students with the opportunity to connect to Colorado’s ski resorts via bus. Learn more about SkiSU, trip dates and locations, and cost.
