Implications of Proposed Employee Parking Cash Out Program at Smith

Melissa Kelley
Geo150, spring 2007

My map displays the relationship between employee groups at Smith College (faculty, administration, administrative support, course support and service) and place of residence. In particular, my project explores the implications of the proposed employee parking cash out program, included in the new parking master plan released February 8, 2007, under which employees can receive $200 in exchange for agreeing to relinquish their parking space on the Smith College campus and leave their cars at home. The $200 incentive does not take into consideration the distance an employee lives from campus. This project assumes that the further one lives from campus, the more difficult it is to agree to stop driving to work. It further assumes that those who live within a reasonable biking or walking distance to campus can most easily participate in the program. In general, if certain employee groups have longer commutes than others, or if certain groups tend to live very close campus, then participation in the parking cash out program, ostensibly meant for all employees, potentially reinforces differences between employees and puts groups of employees at an advantage or disadvantage over others. This map asks: do faculty, administration, administrative support, course support or service staff, on average, live further from or closer to the Smith College campus in Northampton, relative to the each of the other groups? If so, which group(s) can most easily participate in the parking cash out program?