WKU Students To Experience
Changes In Parking On Campus
August 09, 2003
Bowling Green, Ky. - As students return to the Hill for fall classes at Western Kentucky University, they will find some changes in parking.
"Parking can become difficult at the beginning of the fall semester as a large number of people unfamiliar with the campus will be arriving at the same time," said Karl Laves, co-chair of the Parking and Transportation Committee. "Faculty, staff and students are encouraged to plan ahead the first week of classes and allow time for congestion and slow traffic."
One of the most notable changes involves the parking structure, which will be zoned for "B" and "C" permits. Floors two, three and four are now zoned for commuting students with a "C" permit while floors five, six and seven will be for residential students with a "B" permit.
Students with "B" permits will be allowed to park in the Kentucky Street gravel lot near the Kentucky Museum, Dr. Laves said.
Students will also see a new permit this semester—an "N" permit for students only taking night classes. This $25 permit will allow students to park in the Grise, Tate Page, Mimosa and South Chestnut lots between 5 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. All other permits, except for the Campbell Lane permit, will be valid for those lots as well. No permit is required for the remaining lots after 5 p.m.
Dr. Laves said the committee received many complaints from students who had difficulty getting from work to campus and finding parking close enough to get to class on time.
Other changes include:
*The Center Street and Capital lots are zoned for "B" permits only from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.
*The Felts Lot is zoned for faculty/staff from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.
*An additional 379 parking spaces will be available after a $2.1 million project to improve and expand the Creason Lot.
*The fine for parking in a gated reserved space without the appropriate permit has been raised to $50 and the fine for parking in a handicap space illegally has been raised to $75.
*The South Campus Lot has been changed to a commuter lot. Students purchasing a South Campus permit before complained that they were unable to park on the main campus for classes or to use the library, Dr. Laves said. Students parking at the South Campus must now purchase a $65 "C" permit.
"One of the best options remains parking at the Campbell Lane lot and riding the Big Red Shuttle," committee co-chair Randy Deere said. A new bus was added last spring and another new bus will be added to the fleet in January, which should shorten the commute time, he said.
A copy of the Parking and Traffic Regulations and a map of campus parking lots is available from the WKU Police Department or on the WKU Police web site at http://www.wku.edu/police.
For more information, contact committee co-chairs Karl Laves (745-3159) or Randy Deere (745-6037). More WKU news is available on the World Wide Web at www.wku.edu. If you'd like to receive WKU news via e-mail, send a message to WKUNews@wku.edu.
