A universal problem students run into at BYU is the lack of parking. Not only is there a lack of parking for students, but a lack of parking close to campus.
Each Y lot is located at least 10 minutes’ walking distance away from the heart of campus. It is a constant struggle to find a parking spot in a B lot that would allow someone to park overnight without receiving a traffic citation. I even received an email from the Heritage Halls central office concerning parking. They suggested that if I have a car I should try to find another place to live because of limited parking. I should be able to live where I want and still have a car.
The ratio of students to professors is also a concern. There are more students than professors obviously, so you would think there would be more parking for students. Not so. There are many more A parking lots than Y lots close to campus. If you look at a map of BYU, it seems there are more spaces for students to park, but the problem is there are not enough spaces for every student to park, especially overnight parking.
This is not just a concern for freshmen. I am a TA for a sociology class, and one day in class during a quiz, the professor asked students who were done with their quiz to write on the back something they disliked about BYU. While grading the quizzes, I came across their answers.
The majority of students put down something about the parking situation. I recognize not every student has a car, and most faculty and staff members do, but the question begs, who needs the parking spaces more? Students who are on campus all day and even live on campus, or professors who are here only a few hours a day? Everyone can agree that parking on campus is not ideal for students, to say the least, and something needs to change.
Katie Cropper
Provo
