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June 26, 2007

Same Old Game

There are solutions to university parking problems

Story by: Barbara Gelinas

The Shorthorn Staff

Click to enlarge

The Shorthorn: Isaac Erickson

Didn’t I pass that Mazda with the “My other car is a Zamboni” bumper sticker two minutes ago?

It’s 7:45 in the morning, and my class is at 8. I thought 15 minutes would be enough time to find a parking space. I should have known better.

I’m playing every student’s favorite game, Parking Lot Bingo!

You know the rules. You drive around until you find a space, and if you find one, you shout “Bingo!”

It’s a hazardous undertaking, fraught with parking lot stalkers, pedestrians popping up in front of your car and $20 penalties for driving through a space.

No, seriously, we have to do something about the parking issue at the university. Or should I say lack of parking?

I would love to take a train to school, but I would need a car to get from the train to campus. That would still leave me looking for the ever-elusive parking spot.

The university is playing Bingo too. They will be closing lots 49, 25 and 30, but lots L-26 and L-33 will still be open. My card must be defective. It doesn’t have an “L,” and I still can’t find a parking space.

I have a solution for the university’s parking problems. The university should have remote parking and add more shuttle routes. I think students would take the shuttle from the parking lots if they knew they wouldn’t have to wait 25 minutes for the bus to show up.

I don’t blame the drivers for the wait. It’s because there is only one bus per route for 25,000 students. Meanwhile, we don’t have time to wait for the shuttles, so we keep looking for spaces near our classes to avoid a long hike.

I’m back to driving in circles. Maybe I’ll gamble on the parking meter slots.

— Barbara Gelinas is a journalism senior and a staff writer for The Shorthorn