Parking on College Campuses Almost Every Student Essay

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Parking on College Campuses

Almost every student at some point is concerned about campus parking, whether he or she is a resident who wants to have a car for day trips off-campus, or a commuter for whom a car is a vital necessity. Having decent and accessible parking is also an important 'selling point' for many campuses. Regarding the impact of parking upon urban life, particularly tourist areas:

Parking is one of the first experiences that people have when traveling to a destination. Convenient and affordable parking are considered a sign of welcome. Parking that is difficult to find, inadequate, inconvenient or expensive will frustrate users and can contribute to spillover (motorists parking where they should not). As a result, inadequate parking supply can create problems to both users and nonusers... However, excessive parking can also create problems. Parking facilities are expensive to construct, imposing financial costs on developers, building users and governments. In addition, parking facilities impose environmental costs, contradict community development objectives for more livable and walkable communities, and abundant, unpriced parking tends to increase driving and discourage use of alternative modes" (A comprehensive menu of solutions to parking problems, 2011, TDM Encyclopedia).

A college campus is affected by many of the same concerns as a city. It too, wants to draw people from far and wide to apply and attend. It also wants to reduce conflict and uphold a high standard of living for users. But more parking is not always the solution for every college. In fact, it has been said that "overabundant parking supply imposes huge social costs" in terms of the opportunity cost lost on what could be built (Litman 2011). Parking has the potential ability to affect both student retention levels and grades, given the impact it can have upon quality of life. However, limiting parking might also encourage more students to use public transportation which can benefit the environment and uphold a school's reputation as a sustainable campus. Thus the proposed multifactoral study will be to assess the ratio of parking spaces to students at a university, and how it affects student academic performance, quality of life, and rates of car usage at the university.

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It will enable universities to gain a sense of how to balance these competing factors.

The need for parking will vary from college to college, depending on the type of institution. The most obvious determinant of the number of parking spaces, of course, would be the numbers of students. But there are other factors, such as the number of commuters, the availability of public transportation, the desirability of 'getaways' near the campus, and even things to do on campus. This will affect the numbers of students that bring their cars to school. Additionally, the needs of the faculty and administrative staff will impact parking demand. If the campus is located in an area where most professors live close to walking distance from the school or take public transportation, the need for parking will be less marked than at a campus where commuting is a vital necessity.

A final demand to consider is alternate pressures that can impact parking demand, such as environmental concerns. In the demand to create a greener campus, administrators may wish to decrease the number of cars on campus and thus limit parking spaces. However, the need to allow for alternative students (such as adults or part-time students who must work while attending classes) can increase the demand for parking.

Several options exist to expand parking -- the most obvious suggestion is for the university to increase parking garages and lots. This has the advantage of being the most expansive in terms of the increase in parking, but has the detriment of requiring security staff to police car parks late at night and also for increasing demand for parking and car usage because of its attractiveness. Whether having to have specific parking sites allocated for students is another consideration, or reserved spots for faculty. Prioritizing which students receive parking privileges can be a contentious issue.

Another option is to ask for an increase in zoning for off-campus parking, such as curbside on city streets. This is less costly initially, but can….....

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