Record student enrollment brought a record number of cars to campus this week.
Jim Spice, executive director, Parking and Transportation Services, said the university’s 5,195 parking spaces were mostly occupied Monday through Thursday. The peak demand occurred at approximately 10 a.m. each day. Parking Services staff members helped some students to park along roadways in lot 15 near Four Diamonds as a temporary measure Wednesday afternoon.
Spice anticipates parking becoming more difficult beginning Sept. 3 when the City of Colorado Springs implements parking restrictions in the Cragmor neighborhood south of campus. In coming months, street parking in the area near University Hall on the campus’ east side will also be restricted by the City of Colorado Springs.
As a contingency if lots overflow, Parking and Transportation Services will allow students, faculty and staff to park at the Freedom Financial Expo Center, 3650 N. Nevada, and ride a free shuttle to main campus.
In response to neighborhood complaints, the City of Colorado Springs will prohibit on-street parking from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday in the Cragmor neighborhood. Property owners will receive two permits per home that allow on-street parking. For more information about the parking restrictions, please visit http://www.springsgov.com/Page.aspx?NavID=4971
In anticipation of the Cragmor restrictions, Parking and Transportation Services added an additional shuttle bus and expanded shuttle operating hours. Shuttles now run every five to 20 minutes from 6:40 a.m. to 10:35 p.m.
Spice encouraged faculty, staff and students to take advantage of shuttles, to carpool, or ride city buses to campus in an effort to reduce campus parking problems. Individuals who park in the Cragmor neighborhood in violation of city ordinances may face fines of $85 per violation.
HUB permits, which allow parking on main campus, are sold out with a 400 person wait list, Spice said. N permits, which allow campus community members to park at University Hall anytime and after 4:15 p.m. Monday through Thursday (all day Friday) on main campus are still available. Single day permits are also available. For more information about parking options, please visit http://www.uccs.edu/pts/
— Photo by Jeff Foster
A new, 1,227 parking garage on the west side of campus near the intersection of Stanton Road and Austin Bluffs is under construction and should be completed by March 2014.
See a KKTV broadcast about the parking restrictions at
As a new faculty member, I could not even have imagined the issues with parking-even with fair warning from colleagues. I understand the reasons for the situation and am not opposed to adding a short walk to the shuttle and from the shuttle to my office to my commute. The one concern I do have though: I often arrive on campus at a time when the only available parking spaces are at the northernmost lot on Nevada. As many of our department’s classes occur in the evening, my return walk will often be in the dark. Even though the path is lit-I am not comfortable walking that stretch in the dark. Would it be possible to add regular stops at that northernmost lot after dark?
Than you for the update. The biggest problem I have is encouraging students that don’t have classes in University Hall to park there. Those students that have classes up on campus come early in the morning park at University Hall and take a parking space all day; therby decreassing or eliminating parking spaces for nursing and health science students and faculty who need to come and go because of off campus clinical responsibilities.
Sincerely,
Marcia L. London RNC, CNS, NNP-BC