by Jeremy Hunt
Daily Lobo
Students shouldn't spend so much time in their vehicles, said Cynthia Martin, program planning manager for Parking and Transportation Services.
With rising gas prices and construction projects limiting mobility on campus, it's a good time to look at other ways of commuting, Martin said.
"Parking and transportation issues are just getting more serious all the time," she said. "There's a lot that's available, but people just need to be aware."
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Parking and Transportation Services hosted the Alternative Transportation Fair in the Cornell Mall on Monday.
About 20 organizations presented, including the UNM Sustainability Studies program and Recreational Services.
Parking and Transportation Services is starting to offer a vanpool service for students through a company called VPSI Inc., Martin said.
Students sign up for a ride to UNM from an area of town, and they are matched with people from the same area, Martin said.
It takes about seven people to lease a van, and the group designates a driver to take the van on weekends, she said.
Martin said the cost of a vanpool is determined by how many students sign up in an area, how close together they live and how far they are from UNM.
She said the program is in the beginning stages, but students have signed up from Edgewood and Rio Rancho.
Vanpooling is a cheaper and more convenient way of getting to school, Martin said.
"It's really a great way to cut costs," she said. "We're going to offer free parking on campus."
Martin said the vanpool groups will get to pick a space on campus that would normally have to be paid for, such as an A or B permit.
Another good way to save money and be environmentally friendly is by converting a diesel engine vehicle to a biodiesel, said Kevin Forrest, owner of Albuquerque Alternative Energies.
A biodiesel engine running on vegetable oil generates as much power as a regular diesel engine but does not release extra carbon, Forrest said.
Instead of taking carbon out of the ground and releasing into the atmosphere - as with fossil fuel - biodiesel releases carbon that was taken out of the air with photosynthesis.
Forrest's company sells biodiesel, converts diesel engines to biodiesel and gasoline engines into ethanol engines.
Most people get their engines converted because biodiesel fuel costs $1.99 a gallon, Forrest said.
"Ninety percent of our customers are in to save a buck, which is good either way, because it's good for the environment," he said.
Student Meghan Rudd bought a bicycle at the UNM Police Department's bike auction.
The department has an auction every year to get rid of stolen bicycles that were never claimed.
Rudd said the auction is better than going to a bicycle shop.
"It's nice they have all these bikes and give them back to UNM," she said. "Everybody needs a bike."
