Biodiesel or electric – which vehicle is best for the arboretum?

The Washington Park Arboretum staff uses utility vehicles to maintain the park grounds, but current diesel vehicles are a source of pollutants and greenhouse gas emissions (as well as being loud).

A team of researchers used a Green Seed Fund grant to discover whether biodiesel or electric vehicles would be the better option to replace the current fleet when looking at carbon footprint, performance, cost and user satisfaction.

Walk your bike in high-traffic areas

If you’re riding your bike in the middle of central campus, pay attention to pedestrians or you could face a $25 fine.

As part of the Bike Walk Zone, bicyclists are expected to walk their bikes when pedestrians are present in heavily trafficked areas, according to Transportation Services. Parts highlighted in blue in the map below mark where the zone begins and ends. You'll also find signs posted in the areas.

UW EcoCAR prepares for competition

A refined Chevy Malibu sits in the far corner of the UW EcoCAR lab as a reminder of UW’s second place finish last year in the three-year automotive engineering EcoCAR2 competition sponsored by General Motors.

The EcoCAR group is hoping to match that success in the current EcoCAR3 competition, a four-year process to redesign a Chevrolet Camaro to be as energy efficient as possible while keeping its performance.

UW Mailing Services goes bike-powered

There's a new way to deliver the mail at the University of Washington.

UW Mailing Services has recently rolled out a pair of bicycles to use in moving mail around campus. Mailing Services Manager Steven Roberts said the bikes will help most with small or express jobs which come in after the usual daily routes are finished. In the past, these tasks would have required a driver to use a truck. Even though the Mailing Services fleet is all hybrid-electric vehicles, using a truck still means using some gas.

UW Bicycle Facilities Intern position open

UW Transportation Services is looking for a Bicycle Facilities Intern. The position will work with the Active Transportation Specialist to plan, manage, evaluate, and promote bicycle facilities on campus, including bike parking, repair stations, and signage. If you're interested in a hands-on position that will get you out around campus for field work, and that also offers experience in project management, outreach and program evaluation, this is a spot for you.