Parking on campus is something that nearly every student has faced during their time at Western. As everyone knows, parking is a complete mess on campus that causes many commuters stress every day. If you don’t leave at least 30 minutes before your class, your odds of finding a parking spot begin to dwindle. If your class is in Moore, then the last place you want to park is in the baseball lot. But it seems as though you have no choice right? Wrong. These five methods are here to offer commuting students alternatives and tricks that will help them achieve the goal of getting a decent parking spot on campus.
Carpool. If every student on campus just carpooled with other students, then parking would not be such a nightmare. Depending on your class schedules, carpooling can really help make a difference. If you find a friend and carpool with them, then you won’t have to deal with the constant hair pulling and frustration that goes with parking. Carpooling not only saves the environment, it also saves time and energy. It will work out to your advantage. You will not be late for class; you get curbside service and won’t have to walk as far to your classroom, which is especially beneficial on those dreary rainy days. When your friend drops you off and picks you up, return the favor for them when they have class. If your schedules do not work out, you could always just walk to campus. It is not that far from many apartments and you get some exercise which kills two birds with one stone.
Use the Off-Campus Housing Bus that WCU Offers.For students who live in University Suites, Sleepy Hallow, and The Maples, then this does not work to your advantage since the Off-Campus shuttle bus does not come down your way. However, if students from Rabbit Ridge, Laurel Oaks, The Summit, and the apartments at the front of campus use the free bus ride to campus, then it will clear up parking spots for the other students who can’t ride it. The bus is free as long as you show your CatCard and it comes every hour. It picks you up and drops you off behind the Hinds University Center. Taking the Off-Campus Housing Transportation has many benefits that students should start taking advantage of. It keeps your good parking spot right beside your apartment, and prevents you from having to hunt and search for a parking spot on campus; also it takes you to the UC so you can grab a quick cup of coffee from Java City before class.
Be Aggressive. B-E- AGGRESSIVE.The parking lots can get really crowded during the day. With everyone looking for a parking spot all at the same time, the quest to find a parking spot becomes a competition against 50 other people who are also looking for a spot. The winner gets a really good parking spot, while the loser has to keep driving around in circles and probably will be late to class. In the spirit of competition, it is best to be aggressive. If you see an open parking spot, take it. If there is a person, who has been driving for an hour looking and waiting for the next available spot, and one becomes open and they don’t take it, it’s yours. Finder’s keepers; loser’s weepers, that’s the way the game goes. You can always make some fun out of the situation and turn it into a game. First one to find a parking spot wins!
Treat Every Parking Opportunity Like You Are In Krzyzewski-ville. Face it, this campus is packed during the day. So, the best thing you can do is treat parking like you are a student at Duke waiting for tickets to the Carolina game. The kids at Duke set up tents outside the ticket office weeks before the game just to be the first in line for tickets. You can do the same for parking on campus. If you get to the parking lot at a certain time, then you might have to wait. Put your car in park, read a book, get some homework done, listen to music, and wait it out. Someone will be leaving sooner or later, and you could get their spot if you give yourself plenty of time. Would you rather wait for a good spot to open up or walk from the Norton lot all the way to your class in Moore when you have only ten minutes before class starts? Camping out for parking spots will make you the first in line for a decent parking spot that is near your building or classroom.
Park Your Car in the Parking Lot the Night BeforeThis is a good one if you want to do some good old fashioned mooching. The parking lots on campus are dead at around 5:00, so that is the best time for you to go and get your parking spot well before anyone else. Here’s the trick: at about 9 or 10 p.m. convince a friend to follow you to the parking lot. Park your car there at night and ride back with your friend or roommate to your room or apartment. The next morning have that same friend drop you off at class. After class, your car will be right there in the best parking spot ever ready for you to drive it back. This is convenient in many ways; you don’t have to walk too far, you don’t have to deal with what everyone else is going through in the morning, and you feel accomplished that you have the one thing that everyone wants: The Parking Spot.
The bottom line is that parking is an issue at Western that never seems to get solved. Every year it seems to get worse and students grow even more frustrated. Hopefully, these five methods will help improve your odds of finding the perfect parking spot on campus and will help keep your school year stress free.