Parking Wars: How to battle against the parking enforcement and their tickets

Mikey Moore | Staff Writer | @moore_mikey

As the school year starts, so do the rounds of UVU Parking Enforcement handing out those little white love notes that show how much mone y you owe. Collect enough of them, you get a special prize that they put around your tire, hindering the ability of your vehicle to move. Then you get to pay even more money. Cool right?

Every year, students get parking tickets and car boots, or risk the chance of getting one of these things. The ratio of students to parking spots is 4:1. With so many students and not enough parking spots, and classes being so far away, students have little to no choice having to take this risk. Sure you can pay the $85 for a parking pass, but many students can’t afford it.

The question remains of just what, exactly, a poor student is left to do. There are a few tricks of the trade I have been able to pick up, like park on one of the residential streets nearby and walk, car pool with a friend, take the bus, or be a hobbit and take the long walk to school.

UVU has noticed the problem with parking and has spent a lot of money building new parking spots and parking garages. But it hasn’t been enough.

Sure, the bus system is good, but you have to wake up earlier than you’d like and wait at a bus stop. And that bus could be running late sometimes, just like the student could be running late. Those hiccups are left entirely out of the student’s, unless she has a roommate who drives and is on the same schedule. But even then, roommates can be crushing disappointments.

How does one win in this world of “Parking Wars”? Well, it’s a difficult fight and the parking enforcement is a difficult enemy. They are sharp, have the technology, fast transportation and they have uniforms. But they can be beaten. They can be outsmarted. We are few in size, but we are mighty in spirit.

We are like the rebel scum of “Star Wars” and Parking Enforcement is the Empire run by the insidious Emperor Palpatine. Though instead of killing us, they are billing us, which in turn is killing our bank account.

So we must keep up the good fight and walk, or find a friend to ride with, or even park a few blocks away in front of some random dude’s house and hope the neighborhood kids don’t vandalize your car. My fellow UVU students, I believe in you, do what you must, take charge and never give up.