Students need easy parking over a pretty campus

By: Katie Bushey

Posted: 9/29/08

Change is inevitable, and there is no better example of this than UConn. With over $5 billion given to the university to make improvements, students here are used to witnessing buildings go up and come down, get face lifts or boast new amenities. Despite all of the renovations done here on campus, some students are left wondering what the administration was thinking when they decided on certain changes.

There are some improvements students welcome and even praise. For instance, the new quad by the Student Union was a wonderful addition to our campus. However, other improvements, or the lack thereof, are less appreciated by the student body - namely parking and driving on campus.

The university made the leap to add the Orange line shuttle bus this year, but they need to expand the apartment shuttle bus routes. For the lucky students who were not unceremoniously kicked off campus by the housing lottery, apartment shuttles are of no concern. To those who must battle their way into campus by car every morning, the lack of shuttle buses is worse than a rainy Spring Weekend.

Yes, there is already an apartment shuttle. As of right now, the shuttle stops at Carriage, Celeron, Hunting Lodge, Holinko Estates, Clubhouse and Northwood apartments and the Depot Campus. Janet Freniere, director of transportation services for the university, said that there are two buses that make stops every 15 minutes.

Until recently, these stops were adequate to accommodate the number of students who needed transportation in and out of the university. With the recent shortage of housing - that has no respite in the near future - these limited stops are simply not cutting it anymore.

For example, many students wonder why the buses cannot stop at Renwood, Cedar Ridge or Willington Oaks apartments. Freniere warned that students should not expect additional apartment stops. Adding more stops, she said, is simply not possible.

"It's time consuming and cost prohibitive," said Freniere. "One of the things that I point out to people is that the bus stops at the complexes on Hunting Lodge Road because they just happen to be between the main campus and the depot campus."

In other words, the apartments situated on or near Hunting Lodge Road require no extra travel for buses. Freniere added that, "the fact that Norwegian Wood, Renwood, Walden and other complexes are not between UConn facilities means they won't get service."

Although a shuttle bus that picks up students right outside their doors is out of the question, there are definitely some alternatives the university can look into. Chelsea Bartscht, a 5th-semester psychology major who lives in Renwood Apartments, suggested a commuter lot near Carriage House or Celeron Square apartments. That way students could still take advantage of the apartment shuttles at less cost to the university.

"I think it would cut back on wasted time and gas for students," Bartscht said. "I think there needs to be changes to decrease the amount of traffic in central campus. Go green!"

Bartscht's idea would mean that instead of driving into campus itself, students would instead take the shuttle, leaving their cars at lots outside of campus. An idea such as this would save gas and time for students who often spend more than 15 minutes looking for parking spots. It would also save gas by alleviating traffic congestion on, for instance, Hillside Road.

While that idea may sound far-fetched, at least it is an idea. There is no immediate solution to the growing traffic problem on campus, but something needs to be done. Our campus is not designed to support a high volume of traffic, and that is painfully obvious to any student who has been 10 minutes late to a class because X Lot was full. The university may say there is nothing that can be done about the parking, but aren't we taught as college students to think outside of the box? Shouldn't we always look for the unexpected solution? UConn is overlooking a problem that is just screaming for attention. Do not take no for answer. Parking may seem like a silly thing to start a battle about, but this university is more than capable of fixing it.