As students settle into campus, a grievance commonly heard among students at the Capstone is the limited parking available to them.
Christina Bockisch is a first year graduate student studying public relations. She lives off campus and has some concerns about parking on campus, despite the fact that she has a pass.
“I didn’t want to park on campus right away because I am nervous about how it works in the mornings,” Bockisch said.
Bockisch is not alone in her apprehension.
Ashley Hackett is a freshman majoring in journalism. She lives on campus but has a hard time finding parking and has come to the realization that she can’t drive to her classes.
“There is no parking near where my classes are,” Hackett said. “I would like all-access parking across campus.”
Another issue that comes up often with students is the price of the parking permit. The rate this year is $225 for commuter students and $280 for students who reside on campus.
“We’re college students – we’re not rich,” Hackett said.
“For that amount, I want to be able to park where I can be accessible to my classes,” said Nigel McWilliams, a sophomore majoring in telecommunication and film.
McWilliams lives at the Highlands and often has a hard time finding a parking spot. He would also like to see only two types of parking zones: student and faculty.
Shanrica Evans is a freshman majoring in telecommunication and film. She does not own a car on campus but sees the frustration that her roommate goes through trying to get a spot.
“My roommate seems to hate it because she can’t find a parking space,” Evans said. “More parking lots would help because people get angry when they can’t park.”
When asked if UA Parking felt that there were enough spots on campus to fulfill student needs, Chris D’Esposito, assistant director of Transportation Services, said, “Absolutely.”
“The parking environment at The University of Alabama can support our growing student and faculty/staff population,” D’Esposito said.
UA Parking supplies adequate parking for visitors and vendors to campus and also to support various events, he said.
Still, D’Esposito does acknowledge the student perception of a lack of convenient parking on campus.
“While we would like to provide as much parking as possible to the academic core of campus, our geographic boundaries limit our potential,” D’Esposito said.
D’Esposito explained in an email that since campus is surrounded on three sides by the city of Tuscaloosa and on one side by the Black Warrior River, available land is just not abundant for parking lots.
“Students should also remember that the semester has just started, so students are just getting used to where to park,” D’Esposito said. “It will be easier when everyone settles into the routine of the semester.”
