If you're a commuter student with a car, you know - there are not enough parking spaces in either the Theater or Athletics lot for parking. And it is absurd.

Today I had to drive to school - something I usually avoid due to not only to the lack of available spaces, but also none of the assigned student lots are anywhere near my classes - and in order to get a space (not even a good one!) I had to leave my house half an hour before my first class. This means I was searching for a parking spot at 9:40am and at that point, the Athletics lot was already 75% full. I found a spot - and then had to hike up the hill that is Brandeis University in order to get to my class located in Rabb. I arrived a few minutes early, out of breath, with my nose running and my ears aching due to the unanticipated harshness of the 50 degree weather. This is not OK.

For starters: students pay an incredible amount of money to go to school here - give them, all of them, somewhere (dare I say reasonable) to park. When there are not enough parking places, we are forced to park in the many empty spaces reserved for staff and faculty around campus (that are, by the way, much closer to our classes/on campus jobs). Then, we get a ticket for upwards of $20, even though we have already paid between $65 and $125 for a parking pass. A friend of mine faced this dilemma today - she ended up parking in Tower lot when there were absolutely no spaces in either of the commuter lots - and got a ticket. Angry, she took her ticket to the parking office where she proceeded to get into an argument with the resident cranky parking lady. What's worse is that she was told that when both Athletics and Theater lots are full, commuters should park in J lot - which is a  parking lot across the railroad tracks, not remotely on campus. YEAH RIGHT! 

A significant number of spaces in the commuter lots are being occupied by construction vehicles or are reserved for admissions parking - no additional permits have been issued for commuter students (not even those who have high level on-campus jobs!!), making the parking crunch even more difficult. J-lot is honestly not a reasonable alternative - so where do I go? When I can't get dropped off by one of my housemates, I have to stand outside in the cold and wait for the shuttle that supposedly stops several blocks away from my house (It has yet to arrive on schedule), walk, go to school 30+ minutes early to try and find parking and then walk, or face a $20 ticket every time I need to park in a reasonable location on campus. Give me a break.

If you agree that Brandeis needs to do something about the lack of parking spaces for commuter students (hey, why not give some permits for the lot behind North Quad??), feel free to email Ed Callahan or contact the Office of Public Safety. Maybe you too will get to talk to the cranky parking office lady!