Photo by Riki Tanaka for The Current

Last week, the University of Missouri-St. Louis’ War on Parking was brought to light, then Parking and Transportation got its chance to respond. The department claimed no responsibility for the price of parking tickets or passes (saying those are set by the student curator), gave reason for slow shuttle buses and provided advice for avoiding unnecessary tickets for students who drive multiple vehicles.

This was done in open forums in which Leonidas Gutierrez, manager of Parking Operations, answered students’ questions and concerns about parking at UM-St. Louis.

Inevitably, the expense question was raised at the forum, and Gutierrez was ready.

“I don’t know why this question keeps getting addressed at us. The student curator is in charge of the rates. Nobody else but the curator really has influence on these costs. You have to essentially go through the curator and the Student Government Association [to change the price],” Gutierrez said.

Even the president of the UM System, Gary Forsee, is under pressure to do something about parking prices at UM-St. Louis.

“Here there is clearly a question about the price [of parking],” Forsee said.

“At one level it may lend itself to a little focus group; I mean do we need more shuttle capability? Do we need some other things? … But it sounds like there has already been some discussion underway about what could be done…there needs to be some careful collaboration with the students and administration on that,” Forsee said.
Forsee’s mention of the shuttle services is a topic not forgotten by students at the forums. For some students, shuttles could mean an alternative to parking on campus and paying the parking fee every semester.

“I think [the shuttles] can be a good alternative if you metro here and have classes on South Campus and North Campus, and maybe the art building too,” Ethan Chou, chief justice of Student Court, said. “I used to ride the shuttle when I lived back in Oak Hall because it was just more convenient than finding parking on North Campus.”

However, the reliability of the shuttle service at UM-St. Louis has been questioned, raising the question of whether it really is a viable alternative to parking on campus.

“I use the shuttles on a regular basis. Despite this, there have been times when the shuttles are unreliable,” Jonas Kersulis, freshman, electrical engineering, said. “I don’t have any enormous qualm with them, but when they do let me down, it’s a big deal, and I just have to sit there and be late to my class.”

Guiterrez attributes the problem of timeliness and the shuttles to several factors, including unforeseeable setbacks such as traffic, blocked routes and disabled students who require extra help boarding and exiting the shuttles. He also cited “courtesy drop offs” as a waste of time.

“The bus may be driving students on a regular route, and a student may ask to be dropped off at an unscheduled location along the way. This wastes time … In addition, students sometimes wait inside of buildings rather than at the actual stop. This slows shuttles down as well,” Gutierrez said.

Another issue raised at the forum centered on student drivers who drive more than one vehicle.

“I’m curious about whether anything new has been done to assist students who drive multiple vehicles?” Crystal Santamour, senior, biology, asked.

Gutierrez explained that temporary permits can be purchased at the Parking and Transportation Department if a student knows in advance if he or she will be driving a different car.

However, Santamour replied that students do not always know what car they are going to use ahead of time. For instance, Bradley Hult, sophomore, psychology and vocal performance, once lost access to his regular vehicle due to a car accident.

“I was borrowing my dad’s car because of a car accident involving my own,” Hult said. “The office wasn’t open to assist me with a replacement parking pass, and I got a ticket. It was dealt with, but it would have bothered me to have to pay 50 dollars simply because nobody was available to help me.”

By “dealt with,” Hult probably means that he appealed the ticket and the fine was dropped. Chou says that although many of the parking tickets written by Parking and Transportation are “legit,” the Student Court does appeal many of the tickets “depending on the situation.”

Gutierrez also mentioned a Parking and Transportation program that was started to help nighttime students who need a temporary permit after the office closes.

“I have a program called ‘Meet Me in the Parking Lot’ available after 5 p.m. It is now possible to attain a permit even if the office is closed by contacting our nighttime drivers. You have to show your ID and give information, including how you want to pay for the permit,” Gutierrez said.

So, now that the Department of Parking and Transportation has listened to the students and made responses their concerns, the question still remains if anything will be changed. Maybe Forsee’s focus group on parking will pan out? Maybe the Student Curator will demand lower prices? Or maybe everyone will just grumble about it until they graduate?

Since the forums are over, students now have the choice to keep fighting their War on Parking or just waiting to see how it plays out.