There are roughly 16,500 parking spaces at the University, but at times that seems difficult to believe. Searching for parking can be headache-inducing, and the vacant spots always seem to be located in permitted lots that parking enforcement officers patrol like vultures in the Arizona desert.
In the past, many students, faculty and staff members have simply racked up unpaid parking fines. But now the University has implemented booting to crack down on frequent offenders.
An immobilizing device which fastens around a car's wheel, the boot already has forced several drivers to pay outstanding citations since it was implemented in early August, said Andy Mansfield, associate director of management for the Department of Parking and Transportation. A vehicle in the commuter-heavy University Hall lot was booted Monday, but Parking and Transportation released it by the end of the day. Violators must pay all outstanding violations, plus a $50 fee, to release the boot.
"If you look at our trends, there's two distinct groups," Mansfield said. "Folks that got one ticket - that's a warning, and they don't get a ticket again. Then there's another group that got multiple violations. Booting and towing is meant to curb the multiple violation group."
Third-year Architecture student Ben Meguira, who lives in an apartment at University Circle, frequently leaves his car in the lot across from Campbell Hall on Rugby Road, which is restricted to permitted cars only Monday through Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Meguira said he has gotten several tickets for parking in that lot during the permit-only time, consequences of "being dumb," he said. He also left his car in the Scott Stadium parking lot the day of a football game one Saturday - "That was sweet," he said sarcastically. (His car was towed, and he received a hefty fine.) I asked if he, as a frequent violator, thought booting cars was a fair measure. "I'd have to see the policy," he said. "It doesn't seem like such a huge problem here to take such intense measures."
After I finished talking to one student near the entrance of Alderman Library, Ken Flood, visiting from Nashua, New Hampshire, overheard and stopped me to add his thoughts. "That's bad," he said, once I explained the booting policy to him. "Why not take the money and come up with ideas to improve sustainable transit? Just punishing people brings down student morale."
When I told him earning revenue wasn't the stated reason for instituting the boot, he said he was skeptical because he had seen it make big bucks for towns near where he lives. "Let's enforce [parking laws] and put boots on, instead of solving the real problem," he said, giving his view on the mindset of parking officials. The real problem, he surmised, is that a lack of transit options forces too many people to bring their cars to Grounds in the first place. The goal of parking officials should be to "build an incentive to go green," he said.
Most frequent offenders\nAre students, faculty and staff members in need of a reevaluation of their parking habits? It appears so. During an interview last week, Mansfield and Parking and Transportation Director Rebecca White said the problem isn't noticeably worse at the University than at other campuses nationwide, but there are still some who continue to rack up extreme parking tabs.
The University has written citations for 1,500 drivers since July 2009 who still collectively owe $265,000 worth of fines. $50,000 of that total is owed by just 40 car owners, and the two biggest violators each owe more than $3,000.
If someone refuses to pay up, the department will try to contact him using the address registered to the license plate number, or, if the violator is a student or has purchased a permit through the school, the department will send him an e-mail. Anyone who has received a citation may appeal to the University's Department of Parking and Transportation, and, if necessary, the Traffic Appeals Committee, a three-person council appointed by the University president. The cases of students who choose not to appeal or lose their appeal and still refuse to pay are forwarded to Student Financial Services, which in some instances will work out a payment plan. SFS also may place a hold on the student's registration and transcripts. If the owner of the car still doesn't pay and has racked up a significant number of outstanding citations, then the vehicle likely will be booted.
Violators who owe more than $250 also are eligible to be towed after their 14 days to file an appeal has ended. Parking and Transportation prefers to place a boot, however, because it involves "the least amount of invasiveness on someone's personal property, and that's a big thing for us," Mansfield said. Towing sometimes damages vehicles and requires off-Grounds space for storage. Booting only necessitates the parking spot already occupied, decreasing costs for the University. Vehicles parked in a fire lane, a handicapped space or in another dangerous location, though, will still be towed.
Second-year Engineering student David Tracy said he wasn't sure whether the boot would be an effective deterrent. "I've seen [the boot] in Europe," he said. "I'm not really sure how it helps any." At the same time, though, he said it was important for parking spaces to be filled by people who paid for the right to use them. "If they weren't harsh," he said, "people would park anywhere they wanted to"
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