Editorial
Dealing with the parking ticket blues

Have you ever noticed the greenery around campus? Not the trees, but the fluorescent green packages littering car windshields. We’re referring to parking tickets.

Excessive tickets seem to be an epidemic on campus.

Ticket-happy attendants

The men and women in blue seen driving golf carts around campus parking lots are not law enforcement officers but ticket happy parking staff.

It’s hard enough to find a parking space. But having to pay more than $25 in fines for parking areas that may not be marked well is too much.

There should be a certain level of parking leniency during the first week of school to give students a chance to get it right.

With all the advertisements and activities during Welcome Week, parking administration could easily advertise or be more visible to students. This would be the prime time to make sure students learn about parking rules.

A student who got ticketed at Lot E near the library said she wasn’t aware of the carpool rules.

Turns out she parked her truck in the carpool section without the proper permit needed to park in the lot between 8:00 and 10:30 a.m.

Even though she saw the green signs at the end of the lot, she didn’t realize she needed a special permit.

The student carpools, but she used her regular student permit to park.

If parking administration can come up with better ways to advertise restrictions and enforcement, new students, like the one we spoke with may be able to avoid paying fines.

Faulty dispensers

What is a student supposed to do when parking permits aren’t accessible? For example, Monday, the first day of class, the day- permit dispenser near the Health Center was not working by 11:30am.

Students walked up to the dispenser, fiddled with their money, trying to force the machine to take it without success. For at least an hour, every student who tried to use the machine walked away frustrated. Other students tried to help, but the machine just wouldn’t work.

A call to the help number listed on the machine was greeted with a voice message, directing students to a Web site. Not much help when students are on their way to class.

A look at the dispenser later in the afternoon found it finally working.

Lots don’t reflect campus size

Have you ever wondered if the university has ever thought about building at least one parking garage? Would it cut down on chaos and congestion? You bet.

Campuses larger than ours have built parking garages on less acreage than what we have. It’s time for Fresno State to solve the parking problem.

Parking Vultures

Ever tried getting a space in a full lot? Students in cars look like vultures waiting for an animal to die.

The wait begins when one student is spotted 100 feet away by six cars all hoping to get the same spot.

Now students, we can do better when it comes to driving etiquette.

No cussing, and no flipping of fingers is needed. Just wait for your turn.

When it comes to parking and ticket problems on campus, we can all do our part.