Parking survey finds Rice students in local residential area

By Scott Norgaard     9/3/09 7:00pm

Some West University residents may be complaining that their streets are overflowing with Rice-affiliated cars, but a recent survey concluded that Rice vehicles only account for 4 percent of the parking traffic on residential streets surrounding campus.The survey, which was conducted by the Office of Public Affairs with Facilities, Engineering and Planning, the Texas Medical Center, the Rice Village and Desman Associates, a consulting firm, monitored approximately 1,700 vehicles from April 15 to May 5 in 2008, and again Feb. 19 to March 2 this year, by logging license plates.

The survey was conducted in response to residents' complaints that Rice students parking on nearby streets like Dryden Road and Montclair Place was negatively affecting traffic.

"Our neighbors have expressed concerns that parking on both sides of area streets impedes the flow of two-way traffic [and] creates traffic congestion," Greg Marshall, Senior Director of University Relations, said.

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In addition to the logistic challenges with multiple cars cluttering the streets, Marshall said students parking on residential streets could hinder emergency services and potentially endanger pedestrians.

Residents could petition the Houston City Council to prohibit non-residents from parking on their streets. This solution, Marshall said, involves bureaucratic red tape, and would require residents to affix decals to their cars to distinguish their vehicles from those of non-residents. Visitors would have to obtain special visitor's passes to be able to park in these areas.

Instead, Rice strives to take the residents' views into account with its parking policy and Good Neighbor/Go Green program, a series of strategies aimed at reducing Rice's impact on the surrounding community. Marshall credits these policies as reasons for the low impact of Rice students along streets.

"The results of the recent Rice Area Neighborhood Parking Study were very encouraging, and seem to indicate that these efforts have been quite successful," Marsh-all said.

Although parking on public streets is allowable by law, Marshall said that Rice students are held to a higher standard.

"We ask you, in some cases, to go above the law," he said. "When you are at a Rice facility, please park at Rice parking."

Despite the university's best efforts to encourage students to park in university facilities, sometimes the convenience of parking on a residential road is hard to beat.

Kristen Hallberg, a Weiss College senior, said she generally parks in university spaces.

"I can't blame [the students who park on the street]," Hallberg said. "If I knew of a closer spot, I would park there."

Students are encouraged to park in university facilities, as outlined in the Student Code of Conduct. According to the code, "When visiting, residing or working at Rice-owned properties, Rice contractors and Rice students, staff, faculty and their guests are expected to park in university-provided parking facilities."

The survey results are available at http://tinyurl.com/riceparking.

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