Tanner Conelly
A four-way traffic collision near campus last Thursday is leading to a campus-wide re-evaluation of the current state of parking and transit. While the details of the crash have not been made available to the public, students and administrators are raising their concerns.
Sunny Decker, a junior, said she puts the blame on street-side parking.
“You really can’t see anything,” Decker said. “Everyone parks on the street and you just can’t see anything.” Decker, who commutes from the Walmart area every day, said street-side parking is a major factor in hampering her personal travel.
“I feel like it’s one of the bigger things that slows people down because nobody knows when anyone is coming. [Parking passes] are a waste of money [as well] because if you aren’t here earlier than 8 a.m. you aren’t guaranteed a spot,” Decker said. “Why would I spend the money to buy a permit for a spot that I’m not even guaranteed?”
Other students, like Cheyenne Tomkins, said she believes the problem is a lack of spaces.
“It’s actually really difficult to find parking,” Tomkins said. Tomkins parks primarily on ninth street and has had to arrive a full hour before her classes start in order to avoid being late.
But these complaints have not fallen on deaf ears. Paul Kunkel, director of the University’s Transportation Department, said he agreed with the students and admits the current parking situation is “getting more difficult.”
“Parking is already limited and it’s going to get even more limited on campus,” Kunkel said.
The day lot to the south of Wyoming Hall is slated to be closed and used as a staging ground for the demolition of Wyoming Hall.
“It’s going to be a tough couple of years until we get the garage built,” Kunkel said.
Kunkel also announced a shift away from parking passes in the near future.
“We are investigating the possibility of moving away from parking permits and implementing LPR [License Plate Recognition]. I would hope to move to that system within the next two years,” Kunkel said.
This system would act as a virtual parking permit that involves registering your license plate into a database allowing a student to park in any designated zone.
Furthermore, the current transit system will be expanded.
“The express lots are at capacity at certain times of day, especially about mid-morning so we’re going to have to add additional express parking locations,” Kunkel said.
The Summit View parking lots, located across from War Memorial Stadium, are being eyed as a candidate for a new park-and-ride lot.
“There’s a lot of planning we are working on for the next two years. Of the 18 years I have been here, these next few are going to be the most difficult. While there’s not a lot of specifics right now, we will have more specifics within the next six months.”
