One aspect of college life that is often overlooked is the adjustment to LSU’s large campus, enormous student body and the parking and traffic problems that go along with it.
Here’s The Reveille’s guide to getting around campus so that you’re not late for class.
Commuter Parking
With more than 34,000 students on campus and only 21,500 parking spaces, parking can be difficult.
Parking for commuting students, blue parking tags, can be tedious and frustrating. The large commuter lots on campus are located at the AgCenter, Kirby Smith Hall, Tiger Stadium and CEBA — around the campus perimeter. Students parking in these lots need to plan to make at least a 10 minute walk to the center of campus.
To get to class on time, students can tune in to 91.1 FM, KLSU, and listen to Baton Rouge traffic reports and campus parking updates to plan ahead.
“If you are coming for a late morning class, don’t waste time looking for a space in a close lot,” the Office of Parking, Traffic and Transportation advises on its Web site. “You can drive 10-15 minutes around the close lots and still not find something. Go to an outlying lot and use the bus system or walk. The 2-3 extra minutes it takes to walk from there instead of a closer lot will save you time, gas and frustration.”
Yellow and red parking passes are reserved for the University’s faculty and staff. Those parking lots are located primarily within the campus’s interior, near administrative and class buildings.
Pink parking passes are reserved for the University’s Greek residents. The Greek parking lots are located around sorority and fraternity houses near the Rec Center and on Darylmple Drive. The lots immediately behind the Rec, however, are open parking lots. No parking pass is required to park there.
Tickets
If you park illegally on campus, you could be issued a ticket.
If you park in a handicapped or disabled space without the appropriate license plate, you will receive a $50 ticket. If you park without a displayed permit, you will receive a $27 ticket and if you are caught using a lost, stolen or altered permit, you will receive a $27 ticket and the University could take disciplinary action.
Finally, you will receive a $10 to $15 ticket if you park in a different zone than your permit allows. The fine depends on which lot you park in.
Should you receive a ticket, you can appeal.
You must appeal in writing or in person to the Office of Parking, Traffic and Transportation within seven days from the date the ticket was issued. Also, students may contact the office though e-mail, appeals@lsu.edu, or by phone, 578-5020.
Bussing
Even if you do live off of campus and have a blue parking pass, one reliable way to get to campus on time is through the bus system.
LSU contracts with Capital City Transportation (CTC) to provide bus service for students, faculty, staff and visitors both on and off campus. On the bus routes going to campus, students may ride the bus free of charge with a valid student ID. On campus, no identification is required.
During the day, busses operate from 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. At night, a limited bus service is provided between 5:30 p.m. and midnight, Monday through Wednesday and between 5:30 p.m. and 3 a.m. on Thursday night, Friday night and Saturday night.
Two popular campus locations to catch a bus are located at the Fred C. Fry Computing Center on South Stadium Drive and the in front of Lockett on South Campus/Dalrymple Drive.
The Tigerland bus (red route) services the Tigerland area and runs every six minutes, while the Highland bus (yellow route) runs every 10 minutes and services Burbank and Highland Road up to Lee Drive.
Tigerland is also on the night route, for all students taking part in the night life at area bars.
For a more detailed look at the bus schedules, a copy of the 2003-2004 LSU Bus Schedule can be found at the Union.
Living on Campus
For most students living on campus, the best bet is to walk to class. Most dorms are located within minutes of the Quad and the other major buildings where classes are held.
Students living in Greek houses have two bus routes at their disposal. The purple Greek route runs along “Old Row” and “Sorority Row” and has stops near the Quad, Lockett and Tureaud. The second Greek route, the gold route, runs through residential housing areas on South Campus Drive, behind sorority row and through the commuter areas of South Stadium Road and Nicholson Extension to the central campus.
Construction
Construction to Tiger Stadium could also cause some parking and traffic headaches during the fall semester. During the 2004-2005 academic year, all of the West Stadium parking lot will be closed. It is slated to be re-opened in fall 2005, according to the Office of Parking, Traffic and Transportation Web site.
Finally, the Office of Parking, Traffic and Transportation offers a nighttime Campus Transit system.
The Campus Transit service provides door-to-door service seven days a week, 5:30 p.m. through 2 a.m. to and from any location on campus.
Anyone wanting a ride should call 578-5555.