Dear Faculty and Staff,

We’re writing to update you on the university’s Connections plan, which was introduced in September 2018 and which outlined a series of proposed changes to Lehigh’s parking and transportation systems. Since then, our staff has been meeting with students, faculty and staff in various departmental sessions, Lunch and Learn events and other presentations to gather feedback. We’ve also held follow up discussions with faculty, student and staff leadership committees to gain a deeper understanding of their issues and concerns.

As a result of that feedback, we’ve met with senior administrators to re-evaluate options, and have developed a revised plan. These steps will continue our progress toward the more environmentally sustainable and pedestrian-friendly campus that was originally outlined in the 2012 Campus Master Plan, and will allow us to continue to grow and expand as a community of scholars and as a research university of international stature.

These decisions take into account the significant investments the university is making in mass transit capabilities (as well as reciprocal arrangements with the local LANTA bus service) and they also reflect the reality that a decreasing number of students are bringing cars to campus, and are instead taking advantage of car-sharing programs or services such as Lyft or Uber. 

It should be noted that these decisions are based on a university commitment to no longer have any parking costs be drawn from tuition dollars, as they have been in the past.

Changes to the proposed plan include the following:

• Any staff and faculty member with an office on the Asa Packer Campus who expresses a preference for parking on the Asa Packer Campus will be able to have a parking spot on campus. There will be no first come/first serve system to decide this. Every effort will be made to match staff and faculty members with a space as close to their primary office as possible.


• There will be a commuter lot added on the SteelStacks/Sands property off of Third Street and Founder’sWay, and a shuttle serving this commuter lot. More details about the commuter lot will be shared with the campus community by the end of March. The university will be funding the cost of this space, so there will be no cost to the employee to use this lot.


• There will still be different levels of parking, which are outlined on our website at lehigh.edu/connections. As part of this plan, all full-time faculty and staff members and part time staff members employed by Lehigh University as of June 30, 2019 will receive a salary increase of $250 on July 1, 2019. Lehigh’s annual merit-based increase will be in addition to this salary increase. All full-time faculty and full-time and part-time staff will be able to select either a no-cost option for a space on either South Side or Goodman Campus, a $250 option or a $500 option.


• The university will reduce the parking fees for adjuncts, wage employees and volunteers.  The reduced rates are as follows: $250/year (Asa Packer), $125/year (Mountaintop, Upper Residential, 125 Goodman, 126 Goodman, Goodman Lot E and Saucon Village Day Care), and free option (commuter lots on Goodman Campus or at the SteelStacks/Sands lot off Third Street).
  

• The number of spaces for those impacted by a medical disability is being increased from 118 to 211. Staff and faculty with a documented medical disability will apply for a permit, and, if granted, will have access to the available designated Disability Parking Spaces located within their campus parking zone. They can also use the university’s new accessible shuttle service, AccessLU.


• There are changes to the earlier parking policy proposed for graduate students as well. There will be a reduction in the parking permit rates (from the proposed $500 to $250, and from the proposed $250 to $125), and hours for parking on campus will be extended to 6 a.m. to accommodate late night work schedules for many grad students. An email will soon be sent to graduate students outlining more specific information.

In addition to these developments, the university is significantly upgrading our bus system, which will include a more active schedule at the beginning and the end of every work day, and frequent scheduled runs throughout the day.Lehigh is also working to enhance safety around campus through additional lighting and the installation of emergency phones and security cameras in parking areas on campus. The LUPD will work with the City of Bethlehem and owners of off-campus lots to ensure that proper security methods are employed in the designated parking areas for Lehigh staff and faculty.

This parking plan will be implemented July 1st, 2019. Every staff and faculty member will be receiving an email within the next few weeks that will provide more detail on the programs and on the parking registration process. 

It is important to note that the Office of Finance and Administration has asked us to assess the plan one year after implementation, and we will continue to work with all departments and campus groups to identify issues and devise solutions as we navigate these changes.

More specific information about each of these options can be found at lehigh.edu/connections. 

Sincerely,

Patricia A. Johnson
Vice President for Finance and Administration

Patrick V. Farrell
Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs

Brent Stringfellow
Associate Vice President of Facilities and University Architect

Mark Ironside
Executive Director of University Business Services