Chico State needs to fix its parking situation.

I don’t have a campus parking pass, but my friends who do only ever complain about it. They need to get to school 30 minutes before their class so they have time to find a parking spot.

Chico State has eight total parking areas for students with a general parking permit. But is it enough and are students happy with the parking situation? According to them, no. 

Some of the words people used to describe the parking lots were “awful,” “terrible,” “lame” and “needs to be improved.” 

“I have the general parking pass and it’s pretty awful,” Alexa Bridges, a third-year student said. “It can take me up to 45 minutes to park.”

This type of answer was the most common when interviewing people about on-campus parking. It is a mix of a lack of parking spots available, the school selling more permits than there are spots and the price of the permits. 

“I don’t think it’s worth the money but it’s like a necessity because there is nowhere else to park around campus,” Joey Allen, a third-year student said. “I can usually find parking in the gravel lots but it’s not really close to my classes so it’s a walk.”

To be able to go to class, students should not have to look for a spot for 45 minutes or pay $130 to only be able to find parking a 10-minute walk away from their class. 

Yasmin Seraj, a second-year student, has learned how early she needs to leave so she gets to class on time. And thinks the permit is worth it. 

“I do think that the parking pass is worth it … If I didn’t have my parking pass I would be walking to and from my apartment every day, which is about 20 minutes,” Seraj said. “Though improvements need to be made.” 

Reasons like these are why I don’t have an on-campus parking permit. I save money and time by just riding my bike to school which takes eight minutes and I can park my bike extremely close to all of my classes. 

A change is needed when it comes to parking on campus. Many students suggested just building more parking structures. But if that is not possible something else needs to change.

There may be many factors making the parking bad on campus but improvements seem needed to help students.

Owen Daniels can be reached at o[email protected].