Parking locations frustrate students living off campus

Junior Mike Walker is very familiar with Parking Operations. During his time at IU, he has racked up more than $2,000 worth of parking fees. His most expensive ticket was $200.

With limited parking space on campus and fees that can add up quickly, students and the Office of Parking Operations don’t always see eye to eye.

Walker echoed many other students’ complaints.

“Students who live off-campus should be allowed to drive to campus,” he said.

Although the E Permit is designed to do just that, Walker said it is inconvenient and insufficient.

Doug Porter, general manager for IU Parking Operations, addressed this concern.

“The most common complaint is that there is no place to park, but there are always empty spaces. What they actually mean is that there is no place close,” he said.

An E permit allows off-campus students to park at the stadium and catch either an A bus or an X bus to campus, according to the Parking Operations’ website.

Walker said the A bus can sometimes take 30 to 40 minutes to complete its route, and that is not always a feasible option.

“I work on campus, and I’m constantly on campus going from place to place, so sometimes I just park wherever,” he said.

Even though students wonder where the money from these fees goes, Porter said Parking Operations is a self-supporting auxiliary that doesn’t receive funding from the University or the government, and the money goes into its budget.

“We’re a business, and we have to have a source of income,“ Porter said.

But for people who get caught parking illegally, there is an appeals process.

“There are no real guidelines. We tell people to go ahead and appeal something if they think it’s unfair, but if it’s cut and dry, we usually deny the appeal,” Porter said.

Parking Operations said it has tried to make parking and fees less of an issue by publicizing the fact that people need a permit and making it clear which areas require which permits.

“It’s not that I’m upset with parking because I think I’m personally being taken advantage of. It’s just the whole system,” Walker said.