Transportation

Cars can be a quick and convenient way to get where you’re going - but they have an invisible impact. In many countries, including the U.S., transportation is the source of the majority of greenhouse gas emissions.

The University of Washington has recently been recognized as a national leader for its sustainability performance, particularly in the areas of purchasing and transportation.

The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) 2022 Sustainable Campus Index named the UW second overall, and first among doctoral universities, for sustainable purchasing. The UW was also ninth overall, and fourth among U.S. schools, for sustainable transportation.

UW Sustainability has been working on achieving Target 5 of the UW Sustainability Action Plan: Reducing carbon emissions from air travel five percent by 2025. A working group of faculty, staff and students representing environmental science, political science, public service, procurement, and other departments and disciplines meet regularly to work towards this goal.

With over 80,000 students, faculty, and staff on campus, it's difficult to comprehend the sheer number of packages, textbooks, course packets and dorm mail UW Mailing Services delivers on a daily basis. Thankfully, those deliveries are now a lot more efficient and environmentally friendly.

You see the red bikes at racks across campus. Are you already a pro at using bike share to get around campus, or are you wondering how to get started? If you have questions, we've got answers.

The UW has partnered with Lime for dockless bike share on campus. Lime offers electric-assist bikes (which give you a boost as you pedal to get around the city more easily) as well as regular geared bikes. The bikes can be found and dropped off throughout Seattle as well as the UW campus.

How it works

Using the Lime bikes is easy:

Avoid the traffic this Saturday and bike to Husky Stadium for the football game! Once there, UW Transportation Services has a bike valet for secure parking during the game.

The bike valet is on Rainier Vista, just off the Burke-Gilman trail and close to the stadium. You can drop your bike off anytime starting three hours before kickoff, and pick up the hour after the game ends. For more information on the bike valet program, contact UW Transportation Services at 206-221-3701.

It's time for Bike Everywhere Month! May is a great time to break out the bicycles and celebrate biking. UW Transportation Services has several events happening throughout the month, and everyone is encouraged to join the Bike Everywhere Challenge and track your rides throughout the month.

The new U District Link Light Rail Station is scheduled to open in 2021. This is an exciting investment in our neighborhood that will significantly change the way many people get around.  The U District Mobility Group, a community-led effort of neighbors, stakeholders, public agencies and nonprofit organizations, is holding a series of community workshops to collect community members’ ideas on barriers, opportunities, and potential solutions. The goal is a community-driven, holistic, multimodal U District station area mobility plan.

The brightly-colored bikes can be seen in most corners of campus, giving users a convienent option to hop on and ride to their destination. The new dockless bike share systems allow you to easily rent a bike with a smartphone app and park at any public bike rack at UW.