16 minute read
The learning curve
Sustainability is the target, but collaboration is the key when managing campus parking, writes Majid Khan
University estate management teams need to capitalise on the spirit of collaboration as the challenges posed by the current health crisis and ever more ambitious sustainability targets add to the pressure on parking facilities and the transport infrastructure. Co-operation and collaboration lie at the very heart of estates management within the Higher Education sector. As major employers with large campuses and very high visitor numbers, every university – whether city centre or out of town – has a major influence on its surroundings.
Corporate social responsibilities are, therefore, taken very seriously as it is not in the interests of anyone for such centres of education to operate in isolation or without consideration to neighbouring organisations and communities. This is particularly significant in the area of parking and transport management, given the importance of public transport connections and seemingly insurmountable pressures on limited parking facilities.
A national health crisis has simply reinforced this collaborative spirit. Here at the University of Leeds, for example, many members of staff have been working from home during the national lockdown so we immediately provided as much free parking as possible for NHS staff working in the neighbouring Leeds General Infirmary. Moreover, the significant impact of a pandemic on societal behaviour has undoubtedly added further impetus to the sustainability agenda and increased the importance of a collective resolve to improve the way we live and work as we look towards a ‘new normal’.
The challenges in finding the right balance in parking provision for staff and visitors – and, in some cases, students – is nothing new for the estates management team at any university. However, the issues continue to intensify and, despite new technologies and service options, operational complexity and budgetary pressures are never far away. But, just as the benefits of a collaborative mindset can help deliver positive outcomes for local communities, it also helps to foster a cooperative culture where different universities can learn from the experiences of each other to fulfil broader service transformation goals.
Every university has its own unique character, with site-specific physical constraints, legacy infrastructure or planning restrictions to contend with, over and above the core educational mission. Sharing experiences and concerns, though, and having access to definitive guidance and advice on legislative do’s and don’ts, and evolving technologies is invaluable. After all, few of us can have professional expertise in areas such as parking and transport management on the one hand and structural or electrical engineering on the other. It is for this reason that the International Parking Community (IPC) created a dedicated group for universities and other major centres of education to share their operational challenges, obtain clarity for new initiatives and glean insight into the myriad parking solutions that might be available.
Meeting three times a year, the IPC’s Higher Education Special Interest Group is a pro-active forum that reflects and reinforces the collaborative spirit of the university sector and builds on the industry association’s commitment to deliver definitive advice and encourage the principles of ‘Best Practice’. It helps universities to find the most effective solution for even the most complex parking conundrum, covering all areas from parking charges, permit qualification criteria, enforcement and Blue Badge parking to transport subsidies, car-sharing programmes and significant legislative changes such as the new Parking (Code of Practice) Act 2019.
Sustainability is the new mantra
Without doubt, one of the most discussed topics at recent meetings relates to the issues associated with the move away from conventional ‘green travel plans’ to a far more holistic and extensive sustainability agenda. Such far-reaching initiatives are laudable and wholly in tandem with pervading political and societal objectives, but the consequences for universities are considerable. Of particular concern is the funding, provision, monitoring and management of electric vehicle (EV) charging points and the inevitable knockon impact on existing parking policies and facilities.
Leeds has been highlighted in a national report as one of the many urban areas with serious air quality issues, so the city council has confirmed its drive to become carbon neutral by 2030. In recognition of its prominence as an employer and the scale of its operations in the centre of the city – as well as its global outreach – the University of Leeds has launched seven ‘Climate Principles’ with a view to securing a net zero carbon footprint by 2030 and having no direct carbon emissions by 2050. That means sustainability is right at the top of our ‘to do’ list and has huge implications in all areas of estates management – not least on the huge number of development projects planned for the campus.
This year, preparations for the new academic year pose additional challenges for every university. Assessing the feasibility of social distancing, the introduction of one-way corridors, new hand sanitisation points and new signage for over 400 buildings on the campus here at the University of Leeds has certainly been a huge undertaking. The implications of a likely increase in remote working will also have a knock-on effect on the day-to-day workings of the university and the anticipated occupancy of different areas of the campus. But, new car park arrangements, reassessment of the parking permit management system to provide a more needs-based qualification and giving greater prioritisation to hybrid and EVs have also been prompted by the pandemic. So too has the need to plan for wider use of electric scooters and the potential to incentivise and increase the use of electric bikes by staff and students alike. It is as if someone has pressed sustainability’s Fast Forward button!
Five years ago, in the wake of the government’s Office for Low Emission Vehicles (OLEV) grants to encourage the take-up of EVs, we introduced four dual charging points on the campus for use by staff. Although we only received five applications at that time, the writing was certainly on the wall. Indeed, the use of electric and hybrid vehicles is continuing to increase exponentially so we have increased the number of charging points to meet the rising demand and are now looking at plans to allocate a full floor of our multi-storey car park for EV users.
Leading by example
We are also leading by example and all estates vehicles are now electric. That all sounds all well and good but, as many of my counterparts at other universities have also experienced, it is not a simple exercise as there are a multitude of factors to consider: • How does a university fund the ongoing installation of charging points? • What needs to be done to increase the rating of the power infrastructure?
University of Leeds’ multi-storey
• What type of charging points should be specified, where are the best locations for installing them and how can the potential demand be estimated and tracked? • What tariffs should be applied to incentivise the use of electric vehicles while deterring the mis-use of a designated space once a vehicle has been charged? • How can use of electric vehicle charging points be optimised and what is the best way to manage their demand? • What data can be obtained during the charging process to help refine parking management policies and ensure the most efficient use of charging points? • What is the best way to ensure the fair use of campus-based chargepoints and to ensure awareness of alternative public charging infrastructure and encourage home-based charging? • How can additional waiting bays be created or allocated for charged vehicles so as to free up the charging points for other users? • What technologies are available to support such an EV infrastructure and what are the best ways to adjust enforcement measures to take account of the changing composition of parking activities without compromising campus accessibility for staff and visitors? The list goes on… and on!
Shared learning
These are precisely the type of questions where universities can learn from each other and benefit from the expertise and insight of a progressive industry body. Certainly, the IPC Higher Education Special Interest Group has acted as a catalyst for familiarisation visits to other universities, acted as a source of useful industry contacts and for developing innovative responses to specific campus issues. It is also providing a dynamic discussion forum that truly harnesses the inherent spirit of collaboration within the university sector.
Indirectly, the forum is also helping to fuel wider co-operation with local authorities and other primary service centres. The immense pressures on finite parking at and around any hospital, for example, is a major issue for staff, patients and visitors alike and, doubtless, the forthcoming mandate to provide Blue Badge and staff parking at hospitals will create further pressure points.
Through open discussion with other IPC members we are learning from each other and inspiring a range of new initiatives and arrangements that were previously not even on the radar.
This is very much in keeping with our overriding aim to not only to make our own transition to a low carbon future, but also to harness our expertise to support others and to mobilise the University’s combined knowledge, influence, assets and community to tackle this global challenge. Of course, our top priority remains our own staff, but where there’s a will, there’s invariably a way.
Taking pride in a green design
The University of Brighton has created an environmentally-sensitive multi-storey
The Watts House car park at the University of Brighton provides parking for staff, students and visitors. The new multi-storey parking facility forms a key element of the University’s transformational Big Build project on Moulsecoomb campus, consolidating existing surface parking and freeing up space for new academic, social and residential student facilities.
The multi-storey, which won the Best New Car Park trophy at the British Parking Awards 2020, provides 550-spaces and also houses cycle storage facilities, shower and changing facilities within the car park building. There is also a separate area specifically for motorcycle parking on ground level.
The Watts House car park was designed by Stripe Consulting and built by Kier Construction. The multi-storey has a façade that mixes metal and planting. The Berry Systems’ façade has perforated, lasercut metal panels with a powder coated finish.
A living wall is also being cultivated in order to soften the car park’s appearance in the context of the nearby Site of Nature Conservation Interest. A high-tensile cable system allows climbing plants to ‘green’ the green coloured building. Carefully selected plants have been installed on the top deck via suspended planting boxes with a bespoke irrigation system also designed and installed. Rainwater harvesting has been installed to provide a supply of water to irrigate the green wall planting, negating the need to use fresh water, and reducing the energy required to run the car park.
The primary structure is formed from a steel frame, designed to achieve maximum efficiency in terms of tonnage whilst adhering to all required standards. It has a composite deck structure comprising in-situ poured concrete onto a permanent metal framework tray. The deck was then waterproofed with a deck coating. The circulation of the car park is achieved by adopting a Vertical Circulation Module (VCM). The spaces themselves measure 2.4m x 4.8m on the basis the users will be fairly ‘long stay users’ and also in an attempt to deliver maximum efficiency within the building, with disabled spaces measuring 3.6m x 6.0m.
The design is fully clear-span so that the spaces can be re-sized or re-apportioned in the future as demand or requirement dictates. The surface of the car park was treated by Mike Thelwell Flooring with a coloured resin deck coating from Deckmaster, with an epoxy system used for lining and road marking. Each level is colour coded, providing a clear distinction between levels to ease wayfinding.
The spaces have been marked in a ‘parking pad’ design. This has been adopted in order to promote ‘neat parking’ and also negate the requirement to re-apply white lining to the parking bays on a regular basis. The colours identifying the levels, shown on the pads and the cores, are designed to correspond to the Pride flag.
Lighting is provided by LED luminaires throughout the car park that have wireless control that incorporate solar, movement and timed sensors. The general lighting control concept was to prevent the luminaires being on during daylight hours as well as when no movement was detected within the car park and ancillary areas in order to minimise energy consumption.
The multi-storey car park has been provided with CCTV and car access control systems for safety and security. The CCTV system comprises static and pan-tilt-zoom (PTZ) cameras linked to a central controller that has recording and remote access facilities.
The car park’s permit scheme is run by the University of Brighton and is based on a permit scheme linked to the ANPR system. An ANPR system has been installed to track any unauthorised users or abuse of the car park.
The University of Brighton’s vice chancellor Debra Humphris said: “We’re delighted with the quality and functionality of our new parking facility. As well as providing a high-quality solution for our staff and students who need to drive to the campus, the extensive secure cycle parking and facilities, alongside the PV solar panels and electric vehicle charging points provide us with a solid platform from which to pursue our far-reaching sustainability goals. We’re particularly proud of the ‘living wall’ fed by a rainwater harvesting tank which will, in time, help the parking facility to blend into the local landscape and particularly the Watts Bank, a wild, natural area adjacent to the site.”
Setting a new course
Kirby Corner, Warwick University
Warwick is one of the UK’s leading universities, regularly featuring in the top ten of all major domestic rankings. It is currently working on its five-year plan to develop its campus and facilities, with a target of growing its student population by as much as 40% by 2030. The university is thus upgrading its transport systems and, in particular, improving parking facilities and parking management across the campus.
A key project was building a multi-storey at Kirby Corner. The car park was designed and built by Goldbeck Construction. The structure was designed by Goldbeck’s in-house team using Autodesk REVIT software. The 5-level structure provides 1,100 spaces, while the adjacent new surface car park adds another 200.
The steel-frame structure’s façade consists of aluminium panels fixed to the steel sub-frame in five alternative thicknesses and colours. These gradually become lighter higher up the structure in order to soften its profile against the surrounding environment.
The façade extends approximately four metres above the top level in order to mitigate jump risk. Fully cladded staircases and gabion baskets at ground level round off the structure’s appearance.
Coloured walkways within the multi-storey car park structure ensure pedestrians can safely navigate the interior. The levels are colour coded to ensure vehicles can easily be found.
The site also includes an automatic number plate recognition
A woodland wonder
Jubilee car park, University of Sussex
The University of Sussex is located in Falmer on England’s south coast. Its campus is surrounded by the South Downs National Park near Brighton. The university, which received its Royal Charter in August 1961, is the first of the ‘Plate Glass University’ generation and a founding member of the 1994 Group of research-intensive universities.
The campus was designed by Scottish architect Sir Basil Spence,
system as well as bay counting technology. The car park features 10 double charging points that can serve up to 20 electric vehicles. There is capacity to add an additional lift should the need arise.
The university has also tackled congestion caused by drivers seeking available parking spaces, especially during peak times. The university engaged technology company SWARCO to devise a parking management system. As the campus has around 27 car parks, SWARCO identified that a lack of parking spaces was not the problem – the challenge was helping drivers identify where parking was available and signposting where spaces were vacant.
SWARCO recommended the creation of a dynamic parking guidance system. Message signs installed across the campus now display clear space availability arrows and feature the number of available spaces in green or display ‘Full’ in red. This enables drivers to clearly see whether spaces in a particular car park are available or not from a distance and take an appropriate course of action.
The signs are complemented by full-colour variable message signs (VMS) that can be utilised to display any image or text. The VMS can provide parking and traffic flow information, campus safety announcements and be used to tell drivers and visitors about events, maintenance works or road closures.
Occupancy data is sent to the signs by a series of car park counters and inductive loops that record all vehicles entering and exiting each car park. This means the data and status of the car parks are always up-to-date, enabling the university to manage parking availability. The campus is managed using SWARCO’s Zephyr web-based user interface, which enables users to edit message and pictogram displays, as well as upload new text and graphics when required.
best known for his work on Coventry Cathedral. Largely built during the 1960s, the campus’s architecture is highly regarded, its buildings winning numerous awards including a medal from the Royal Institute of British Architects and a Civic Trust award.
The high quality of the existing buildings, and the South Downs setting, meant that when the university set out to build a new car park it wanted a building that had architectural merit and was also environmentally sensitive.
The Jubilee multi-storey car park, designed and built by Goldbeck Construction, provides 340 parking spaces over eight split-levels, as well as a parking area for up to eight motorcycles and nine charging points for electric vehicles.
The building’s exterior features a façade that comprises aluminium panels interspersed with portholes to allow natural light and ventilation to reach each level of the car park.
The car park sits next to woodland, so extensive planting has been carried out around, behind and within the structure. Over 60 trees have been planted around its perimeter and in two atriums in the middle of the parking lot. In addition, the boundary path that runs behind the new parking lot has been moved closer to the forest and is now more accessible for hikers and runners.
Each floor has been allocated its own colour to make it easier for drivers to find their parked vehicle. Cameras are installed on each floor of the parking garage to increase user safety. In addition to video surveillance, there are refuge points and emergency telephones on every level. Fire alarm systems with acoustic and optical alarms are also installed.
