The Utah Transit Authority prepared by putting all of its trains into service and adding a third car to many trains that typically would carry just two at various times of day, spokeswoman Carrie Bohnsack-Ware said. The only "hiccup" in the morning commute came when one train's door malfunctioned, requiring a delay of a few minutes, she said.

"Typically, the first three days of back to school are always a little crazy," Bohnsack-Ware said, "until people find the schedule that works best for them and people settle into their routines."

This year, though, the U. is trying to boost the ranks of students riding buses and trains with the passes they can get after paying tuition and fees. The school is expecting a surge, thanks to the run-up in gasoline prices and the first increase in campus parking fees in seven years.

Daily campus ridership could reach as high as 16,000 this year, but officials need to complete parking surveys and obtain UTA ridership figures before reaching any conclusions.

"We anticipate an increase of 15 to 20 percent," said Norm Chambers, the U.'s vice president for auxiliary services. "Right now it's more an intuition until we get some more data."

Downtown work commuter Jayna Lofgren of West Jordan said she is used to the annual back-to-classes TRAX rush and Monday seemed no different: standing room only on trains from Sandy for anyone boarding after Midvale.

As she spoke Monday afternoon at the Gallivan Plaza stop, a university train dumped hundreds of young adults onto the platform. U. student Randy Smith rides from Murray to campus daily and said it no longer makes any sense to drive his car.

"There's nowhere to park," he said.

bloomis@sltrib.com

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* BRIAN MAFFLY contributed to this story.