Lincoln Creek Transportation Center moving to a free permit system starting Sept. 21

Western Washington University, which owns the Lincoln Creek Transportation Center lot at the corner of Lincoln and Byron Streets just east of Interstate 5 in Bellingham, is moving to a permit system for that lot effective Sept. 21.

The lot, which sits on the site of the former Samish Twin Drive-In, has 450 parking spots and is used primarily by Western students and employees in conjunction with the WTA buses that shuttle passengers up Bill McDonald Parkway to campus. The general public also uses the site as a park and ride and access to the WTA route system.

Starting Sept. 21, all users of the lot must have a parking permit (available online at http://www.wwu.edu/ps/parking/  starting Sept. 14) which can be printed out on home computers; for the 2015-16 school year, these permits are free, although a nominal fee may be set in the future. These permits are also available in the Campus Services Building.

Making the transition to a permit system for the LCTC will allow for utilization tracking of the lot and provide a means to communicate with lot users. In addition, charging fees for the lot will assist in offsetting its maintenance costs and allow for future upgrades.