Stanford and the General Use Permit

On this page

• What is the GUP?
• What is the peak period?
• Who measured our baseline count in 2001?
• What is a cordon?
• When are the cordon counts?
• Who is measured?
• Where is the cordon line located?
• Who are those individuals in the orange jackets, and why are they writing down license plate numbers?
• Do Hospital employees count? If not, how do you account for some Hospital employees who may be entering campus, and contributing to the GUP peak period commute trips?
• Do off-campus students count toward the cordon? Does event traffic count?
• Where can I get information on sustainable transportation options available to me?

What is the GUP?

One of the conditions of the GUP, defined by Condition of Approval G.4, states that “Stanford shall mitigate the transportation impacts of its additional development and population growth either through a program of ‘no net new commute trips’ or through proportional funding of mitigation measures for specified impacted intersections.” Since Stanford has chosen the “no net new commute trips” approach, the university’s goal is not to exceed the 2001 measured number of vehicles entering and exiting the university during peak periods over the life of the GUP.

Subsequent measurements are conducted twice a year through the life of the GUP to determine if Stanford is meeting the goals specified in the GUP agreement. With the university population steadily growing, yet the allowable peak-hour commute trips remaining at the level measured in 2001, meeting the goals of the GUP is becoming an increasingly difficult challenge.

What is the peak period?

The “peak commute period” is defined as the one-hour period of time with the highest volume of traffic, as determined by the cordon counts. Peak commute times fall between 7 a.m. and 9 a.m. and between 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. Based on past counts, the one-hour peak traffic periods are occurring between 8 a.m. to 9 a.m. and between 5 p.m. and 6 p.m.

Who measured our baseline count in 2001?

The Santa Clara County Planning Office selected a third party, Korve Engineering, to establish the baseline in 2001. The data collection involved three, two-week periods in the spring of 2001, and one two-week period in fall 2001.

What is a cordon?

Sixteen entry/exit points define a cordon line around the campus. Trip counters (rubber hoses extended across the roads) are used to measure vehicular trips across the cordon line (trips to and from the university).

When are the cordon counts?

Exact dates for the cordon count periods vary from year to year; however, they always occur during the spring and early fall.

Who is measured?

All university vehicular traffic crossing the cordon during peak commute periods is measured. Hospital employees parking in university lots that require permits are not counted. Trips generated by Stanford Hospital and SLAC employees who do not work within a parking permitted zone are not counted toward the cordon count.

Where is the cordon line located?

The cordon line is defined by 16 cordon points located at: 1. Campus Drive West north of Junipero Serra Blvd. 2. Stock Farm Road east of Sand Hill Road 3. Welch Road north of Oak Road 4. Quarry Road north of Campus Drive 5. Palm Drive south of Arboretum Road 6. Lasuen Street south of Arboretum Road 7. Galvez Street south of Arboretum Road 8. Serra Street southwest of El Camino Real 9. Yale Street west of Stanford Avenue 10. Wellesley Street west of Stanford Avenue 11. Oberlin Street west of Stanford Avenue 12. Olmstead Road north of Escondido Road 13. Bowdoin west of Stanford Avenue 14. Raimundo west of Stanford Avenue 15. Santa Maria Avenue north of Junipero Serra Blvd. 16. Campus Drive East east of Junipero Serra Blvd.

Who are those individuals in the orange jackets, and why are they writing down license plate numbers?

The individuals in the orange jackets are employees of the contractor hired each year by the county Planning Office to measure the number of peak-hour trips generated by the university. The last four digits of each license plate are surveyed for both inbound and outbound traffic on one day each week during the cordon count. Cars that have entered and exited the campus between a 15-minute period through separate campus entrances are considered “cut-through” traffic, and are subtracted from the count. Vehicles that enter and exit campus through the same location are not considered “cut-through” traffic—i.e., are considered a trip—since it appears they have dropped off a passenger and contribute to Stanford’s trip generation.

Do Hospital employees count? If not, how do you account for some Hospital employees who may be entering campus, and contributing to the GUP peak period commute trips?

Hospital employees do not count toward Stanford’s trip generation. To adjust the count for Hospital employees who may park in parking lots within established cordon line, parking permit counts are conducted to identify which vehicles in parking lots are university-related vehicles (shown by parking permits with the text “CAMPUS”) or hospital-related vehicles (shown on parking permits with the text “HOSPITAL”). Hospital vehicles parking within the cordon are subtracted out of the cordon count. Likewise, if a vehicle displaying a campus parking permit is observed in a lot outside the cordoned area, it is added back into the cordon count.

Do off-campus students count toward the cordon? Does event traffic count?

Yes. All vehicular traffic crossing the cordon during peak periods, whether single occupancy vehicle, multiple occupancy vehicle, motorcycle, visitor vehicle, or resident student vehicle, count toward the cordon measurement.

Where can I get information on sustainable transportation options available to me?

Stanford Transportation has a number of options and programs to encourage the use of sustainable transportation. For a summary, please visit our "Find Your Sustainable Commute Options" page. For any other questions, feel free to contact us at Stanford Transportation; Phone: 650.723.9362; Email: transportation@stanford.edu.