Tu To
Staff Writer
There has been a slight decrease in parking tickets given since the Trojan Center parking lot opened at the start of this semester, considering the drop of enrollment of Troy campus students.
In an email sent to all students before spring semester started, Herbert Reeves, the dean of student services, said there was a net gain of 300 parking spaces on campus with the completion of the new lot beside Trojan Center (TC) and closure of the Sartain Hall lot.
According to the Troy University police station, in of fall semester 2017, there was an average of 720 parking tickets written. During spring semester 2018, since the TC parking lot has opened, there has been an average of 611 parking tickets written weekly.
Lt. Collins Davis of Troy University police said the change in the number of tickets given does not necessarily reflect the impact the new lot has brought.
“This semester, we do not have as many students as the fall because of graduates and transferred students,” Davis said. “However, from what I have observed, the new lot has helped a lot.”
Davis said in the fall, even with the rise in the number of new students, Troy University will possibly have the capacity to hold all vehicles.
“Students have to be willing to walk a little bit,” he said. “The parking lot near Trojan Arena is never full.”
After 23 years of working for Troy University police, Davis has seen efforts made by the university to help ease this parking issue by building more parking lots and offering shuttle services.
He suggested that students living in apartments around campus could utilize the shuttle service to save time driving on campus and gas money and open up more spots for others.
Crystal Smith, a senior biomedical sciences major from Robertsdale, said before the new parking lot by TC was added, she would spend 10 minutes driving around from parking lot to parking lot searching for a spot before her classes.
“However, I feel since the new parking lot has been opened, parking has been much less of a hassle before class,” Smith said. “I normally park in the new TC lot every day for class.”
Smith said even though finding parking spots on campus will most likely always bring some degree of frustration for students, she acknowledges the efforts being made toward improving this issue.
“I feel like the location of the new lot is perfect,” Smith said. “Also, once construction is finished with the new Sartain building and parking lot, I believe parking will become less of an issue.”
Aayush Manandhar, a senior business major from Kathmandu, Nepal, commutes to campus every day. He said his favorite parking spot is behind the library.
“However, if I come to class late in the morning, the lot behind the library is normally packed,” said Manandhar. “The new lot is a safe bet, even though it’s much more of a walk to my classes.”
The problem seems to persist with residents living on campus.
Kaitlin Woods, a sophomore biomedical sciences major from Haleyville, said she still experiences trouble finding a parking spot near Shackelford Hall.
“If I ever have to leave during a weekday for anything when I get back, it’s really difficult to find resident parking,” Woods said. “I have to park pretty far away from my dorm some days.”
Mack Morris, a senior global business major from LaGrange, Georgia, and campus resident, said even though now the parking in front of the dining hall is for on-campus residents, he struggles to find parking there sometimes.
“It’s normally bad when people park there to go eat in the dining hall,” Morris said.
