Travel Choices at a Suburban University Campus Isolated by Forest

Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE) is a suburban campus of 2,660 acres with a core campus surrounded by forest and lakes/ponds. Core campus can be accessed via six roads and one multi-use path. Located next to the City of Edwardsville and just a short drive (about 20 min) to the City of Saint Louis, MO, this university has a notable commuter student population. The student body is approximately 13,300 students who are predominantly regional, from the state of Illinois and the St. Louis metropolitan area. Because of the unique characteristics of the University campus, the authors sought to measure student, faculty, and staff travel modes, housing locations, and sustainability perceptions. The findings suggest that the cost of parking passes would need to nearly double before students would seriously consider alternatives to personal vehicles for traveling to/from campus. On the contrary, travel choices for trips within campus were more responsive to changes in mode attributes. Overall, the isolation of SIUE campus provides a unique environment to observe the travel choices of University students and employees.