Parking on campus is a consistent issue for students and faculty alike due to many factors.
According to Chief Frank Fernandez, the number of parking tickets issued is in direct correlation to the number of officers available. That being said, there are anywhere between 25-35 parking tickets issued per week.
Tickets are either paid outright or added onto students’ school bills or staff’s payrolls. If you get a ticket and your vehicle is unregistered, you get three warning letters before Public Safety sends your bill to collections.
“The main purpose of parking enforcement is to educate our students about following rules and regulations established and to maintain parking availability for those who have legitimate reasons to park in our parking lots,” Fernandez said.
According to Fernandez, there are a couple of violations that Public Safety sees more frequently than others.
First, a common violation is parking in the “no parking 2 a.m.-6 a.m.” spots during the prohibited times. Another is having an unregistered vehicle in the student parking lots. Finally, many students and staff forget to display their parking permit.
Although these parking violations are common and many students have gotten tickets before, there are some things that can be done to prevent getting tickets.
“Students need to understand that parking enforcement is necessary to maintain order in our parking areas,” Fernandez said. “They need to register their vehicles, avoid parking in visitor’s parking, and contact Public Safety with any questions regarding parking. Do not take chances or guess.”
The repercussions of not taking these rules seriously is quite severe: after three citations, a suspension of parking privileges may occur, which can result in the impoundment of the vehicle in question if it is found on campus.
Those with questions regarding parking can contact parking services at (614) 236-6505; their hours are 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Friday. Students can also visit the office at 661 College Ave. Aside from this, there are resources regarding parking policies and who to contact with questions on Capital’s website under “Campus Safety.”
