Parking at UHart has become a game that students are tired of losing. The number of times my friends and I have returned from the store and struggled to find parking is shocking. We circle all the lots near our apartment, looking for parking, but to no avail. Finally, we will give up and go to C or D lot and hopefully find parking there, but as someone who lives in the 4’s, that is a far walk to do if you’re late for something or if it’s nighttime. We had to come back late at night from getting food and had to park all the way in the back of C lot. As college girls we already have concerns about our safety, but it’s heightened when we have to walk almost 15 minutes back to our apartment when it’s dark outside. Also, as it starts to get colder there are even more safety concerns involved. Having to walk far during the night or day, when it’s slippery, is dangerous. And I’m sure we all have seen the icy steps or snowy sidewalks that always appear after a wintry night and don’t seem to get taken care of in a timely manner. Furthermore, as someone who commuted for my first two years and am now a resident, I have seen both sides. When you’re a commuter, it’s the struggle of being late for class. If you have already had a long drive with traffic, coming to campus and not finding a spot can just add to your stress. This can cause students to park in unofficial spots in order to try and make it to class on time. Then you run the risk of getting a ticket and having to worry about whether you can pay it off. Now as a resident, I have had a different experience. Many of the parking lots are destroyed with potholes, making students worry about the bottoms of their cars and tires. Also, when there are games on campus, N lot fills up quickly with parents or guests. These take away spots from students who actually need them. As students who are paying high tuition fees, parking should not be an issue. Hopefully, with them adding more spots to F lot we will start to see changes, but at the moment, we are not getting accommodated in the way we deserve.
