The end of 2019 saw many issues for public transportation users all across Ottawa. With the rise and continuous fall of LRT’s Line 1, issues have not dissipated for off-campus students at Carleton.
Off-campus students’ transportation options are taking some form of public transportation, or driving and parking on campus. Both of these options are continuously becoming less and less feasible.
The LRT has become notorious for delays and breaking down, which then causes further delays.
For students who live in the east or west ends of Ottawa, commuting means having to take either a bus, train, a bus and a train, or in many cases, more than one of each. This means for many students, what should be a 20-minute bus ride has turned into an hour-long daily trek.
The idea of driving to school has become a lot more enticing to many students who fear not being able to get to class on time, especially on days with important deadlines or exams. And although the idea of parking on campus might sound painless to some, for those of us who have tried, we know this is not the case.
Not only has it become (what feels like) impossible to find any free parking spots on campus—even in the large parking lots by residence and athletics—but the high parking costs are making it unsustainable for students living on an already tight budget.
Not only is the cost of parking on campus $4 an hour—which is over a dollar higher than the average cost of parking in Ottawa—but many of the parking areas on campus have a four-hour maximum parking rule. This means your options for finding a spot are even further limited.
This is not to mention the amount of time it takes to simply leave campus because of the conversion of Campus Avenue to a one-way street.
Nicole Croteau is an off-campus student who commutes an hour and a half each day to get to school. She is just one of the many students who have felt the effects of the unstable parking conditions on campus.
Not only has Croteau missed several classes because she was not able to find parking, but she says she also nearly missed one of her midterms.
This situation is leaving Carleton students in a compromised position. If students can neither take public transportation due to its unreliability, or park on campus because of the high cost and lack of parking spots, how are we ever supposed to receive a sufficient education?
Not only should the City of Ottawa and the Public Transportation Committee aim to make changes to the LRT and bus routes to better accommodate students, but Carleton should also make changes for students who choose to park at school.
Students have better things to worry about than whether or not they will be able to make it to school in the first place.
File photo.
