Students and visitors now have another way to travel to and from campus on Aggie game day. Parking lot 30E is now a designated Uber and taxi lot for attendees to be picked up and dropped off.
This new function of the parking lot started as a pilot project in 2016, but Transportation Services have now officially designated Lot 30E as a pickup and drop off area. Transportation Services Communications Manager Melissa Maraj said this helps alleviate congestion on the streets.
“Lot 30E offers transport services, such as rideshare [Uber and Lyft], hotel shuttles, taxi services and limousines [and] easy access to a location that is within close proximity of Kyle Field—where fans can be dropped off and picked up safely prior to and after the game,” Maraj said. “Having the Lot 30E location reduces the stop-and-go traffic that is seen with these types of services and reduces congestion and backup on streets, which lessens traffic hazards and keeps pedestrians safe.”
Texas A&M Transportation Institute Research Fellow Tim Lomax said it takes the work of the City of College Station and Transportation Services to make travel on game day safe and efficient.
“The city of College Station and Transportation Services have a lot of people and technology that combine together to make the post-game work,” Lomax said. “It is a combination of people, technologies and communication.”
For those looking to save money, Transportation Services has free shuttle busses for people that park in Downtown Bryan and Momentum Plaza, located at University Drive and Copperfield Parkway. For off-campus travelers, A&M bus routes 22, 26, 31 and 35 operate two hours before kick-off, stop during the game and operate an hour and a half after a game ends.
“Fans attending the game can take advantage of the free express shuttles that are offered during game days,” Debbie Hoffmann, Transportation Services associate director said. “Taking the shuttles are a quick and hassle free way to get to and from the game.”
Fans with a valid A&M parking pass may park in select lots on campus and utilize the on-campus bus routes that continuously run until an hour and a half after the game. For those without a parking permit, some lots range from $20 to $83.50 depending on how close they are to the stadium.
“The added benefit for fans this year is that reservations are now available. Parking can be reserved and held until you arrive to make the process of finding parking that much easier,” Hoffmann said. “Again, taking the shuttles are a quick and hassle-free way to get to and from the game.”
Roughly 27,000 rides are given on the bus routes during an average game day according to Lomax who also said the challenges of bus transportation come after the game when everyone wants to go home.
“The amount of time and the fact that we have a lot of people come for tailgates and other things makes traffic and transportation problems pretty moderate until after the game,” Lomax said. “You’ve got a stadium full of people and another 15 to 20 thousand sitting at Aggie tailgates that all want to leave at the same time.”
Whether fans utilize the new Uber Lot, bus routes or parking on campus, Lomax said the safety of the fans is the highest priority.
“If you look at the plan we have, we are trying to separate vehicles and pedestrians,” Lomax said. “Pedestrians are always going to lose that argument. It also doesn’t help the vehicular flow if drivers are having to watch out for pedestrians. What we are trying to do is, where we can, separate car flows and pedestrian flows to make Aggie game days safe and fun.”