ED OYAMA/Daily Bruin
 Adrian Haymond If you’d like to discuss
or just express your disgust, feel free to contact Haymond at
[email protected].
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Parking is the subject everyone loves to moan and complain
about, but no one seems to have a plausible solution. As with any
problem, the parking situation is extremely complex, but the
comments reflect only the narrow-minded view of whatever
constituency is affected. In other words, the other guys (students,
faculty, staff, administration or visitors) are the problem; if
“they” (students, faculty, staff, administrators or
visitors) just took their fair share, there would be no problem,
since “I” would be satisfied.
This does nothing to help the situation and only divides the
UCLA community. On the other hand, if we try to deal with the
issues that contribute to the perennial parking congestion, there
may be a glimmer of hope for reducing the frustration, stress and
wasted study and work time that congestion has generated. By having
dialogue between the various segments of the UCLA community as well
as the surrounding neighborhood, I’m sure some compromises
can be made.
By sacrificing our need for complete convenience, we can
actually empower ourselves and make a difference. Instead of
complaining and suffering from an acute case of myopia, I’m
talking about solutions that should reflect the unity we have
always talked about achieving. Why shouldn’t it start with
parking?
The surrounding neighborhoods provide an excellent release valve
for the hordes of people jockeying for parking spaces on campus.
Unfortunately, the residents decided a few years back to severely
limit (if not eradicate) that release valve by restricting access.
The reason for this was because 1) the residents’ parking
spaces were all but taken up by UCLA people and 2) some thoughtless
people decided to “whoop it up” while returning or
leaving their vehicles, awakening and scaring those who live in the
quiet streets around UCLA.
It may be possible that with an ear to their concerns, we could
work out a reasonable solution that would release some of the
untapped parking resources. The solution could include stiffer
penalties for obnoxious behavior and loud conduct on the streets as
well as having specific times in which students and others can and
cannot park. It may not be the unlimited access we had before, but
we cannot afford to be choosy; we can use any extra parking space
we can find.
Working with our own Capital Programs may also prove beneficial
in creating or releasing parking spaces for UCLA’s
constituents. It seems that in many cases, a construction project
can provide immense frustration, not only in the amount of noise
and inconvenience it causes by rerouting traffic, but also in the
amount of parking space such projects sometimes eliminates. As this
is not yet a “˜no-growth’ campus, we know that capital
projects must continue, but perhaps more of the UCLA community can
become involved in determining mitigating factors that can help
alleviate the parking crunch.
Instead of being adversarial, the various sectors of the
community ““ students, faculty, staff and administration
““ can meet and work on possible solutions. When people have a
voice, then they are more likely to take the needed steps toward
resolution, as well as toward understanding the sacrifices that
each affected party must undertake.
We also must look within ourselves and ask if we can sacrifice
our need for convenience for the sake of having a less congested
campus. It seems most people drive to campus because it is rather
convenient to be able to get in or out of a car in a moment’s
notice. While this may help the goals of an individual person, such
a mentality only worsens the parking situation as a whole.
When thousands of people have this same idea, the advantages get
lost because; 1) you have to find an available parking lot; 2) you
have to navigate stack parking; or 3) you have a run-in with a
fellow UCLA person who just beat you to a parking space.
What I humbly suggest is that we cool down our romance with the
nearest parking space by using off-campus parking areas. Many of us
either pass by or live near malls that offer free parking. Since
the parking security in the malls is comparable to what is
currently in place on campus, the only disadvantage would be the
extra time required to use public transportation.
Of course, this means getting up earlier and planning for a
later arrival. And of course, it would not be practical for women
to have to get to their cars at night in a dimly lit parking
structure. But there are some that could save a lot of frustration
by parking their cars on off-campus sites.
Besides, the benefits of having the ability to sleep or study
while traveling outweigh any inconvenience.
Another solution may be the changing of the carpool/vanpool
programs here at UCLA to attract more participants. At this time,
many people do not take advantage of the rideshare program because
of its costs. Lowering these costs may induce those who find it
convenient to drive to ditch their car at least once in a
while.
We can either sit here and scream about parking (and get
absolutely nothing done), or we can work with those around us and
actually begin to resolve the issue.