Dear Parking Services,
This is not a letter filled with hate, it is a letter filled with genuine concern. Things need to change, and I mean now. The first and most obvious problem with parking on campus is that there is simply not enough space. Over half of the parking lots physically located within campus are A and B zones, meaning these lots are designated for Auburn faculty and staff only and off-limits for students. Now don’t get me wrong, there are parking lots designated for student commuters; these are deemed PC and C zone lots. The problem with these is unless you have an 8 am class and pull up in the parking lot before 7:30, chances are those spots will all be taken by mid-morning. These lots are also not centrally located. And by not centrally located, I mean some people park in the C zone lots and still have to catch a transit to get to campus; or keep their bike on the back of their car to expedite the morning commute.
Now I’m sure you will have a very good rebuttal to the above statements; we are young college students and shouldn’t mind having to walk a little farther to get to class. Fine. That’s an accurate statement, I don’t expect students to completely overrun A zone parking and be able to park within a 5 foot distance from the door of the class room. However, C zone parking becomes a problem in the case of commuter students, like myself, who have class from 8 am in the morning and don’t leave campus until 8:30 pm that night. Speaking from personal experience, it is quite daunting to have to walk back to my car, which is parked about ¾ a mile off campus, when it is pitch black outside. Being a young, female student, I just don’t feel safe. Period.
After getting two tickets from you in the span of three days, I finally got fed up enough to call you out and tell you my concerns. My parents even got involved. I am open to suggestions, but walking across campus to get back to my car late at night is just not an option. One of the propositions you suggested was to take the security shuttle back to my car. This is an option that I had previously considered, but then I remembered my one and only experience with the security shuttle freshman year. It took me 45 minutes to get picked up at the student center and taken back to my dorm in the Village. This could have been a 10 minute walk. So, no, Parking Services, after being on campus for over 12 hours, the last thing I want to do is take a shuttle that will add an additional 30+ minutes of me getting to my car.
This letter only scratches the surface regarding the multitude of issues surrounding on-campus parking for students. Don’t even get my started on the RO lot. Is our safety not your top priority? Is convenience also not a priority? Is there such a thing as safe and convenient parking that will please the faculty while still keeping students in mind?
Sincerely,
A fed up but concerned college student