Floaters, get out of the way!

We think students should stop floating and start walking.

"Floating" describes a person who is sitting in an unmoving vehicle, waiting for a parking space to open up.

We are not completely against floating, however. Sometimes people float because they actually see a person heading to his car to leave, or because around a certain time of the hour, some students get out of class and leave campus. A person who has an injury or some other condition might need a space closer to his or her destination.

We are only concerned with people who sit their vehicles dead-center in the lane so no one can even try to go around, ignore the honking behind them, even though they are perfectly capable of walking.

Everyone is a unique individual with his or her own special, defining qualities. That is not an excuse to stall the cars behind you while you wait for a parking space to open up. No one student is entitled to threaten others' schedules and agendas.

It is obvious why some students resort to floating. The current availability of parking spaces is less than ideal. However, there are a number of reasons why floating should almost never be the answer.

First, floating, at its worst, may prevent other vehicles from entering a lot, affecting traffic outside the lot. This works the other way: floating may prevent vehicles from leaving a lot. Some students do not have time to float or wait for the people ahead of them to park. They might have class, an appointment, or a test.

Second, floating is really one of the most self-centered vehicular acts. Most people who float are probably in no hurry, which is why they can afford to park in the middle of a lane or street for up to half an hour (sometimes even longer). Again, what about the people they are holding up?

Finally, the amount of time some students take to congest parking lots is more than enough time to park someplace a little farther away and walk to their destinations. Yes, it can be a hassle—your next class is in the library and the only open parking space is on the other side of campus—but it would probably take about 15 minutes to hoof it, as opposed to not knowing at all when a space might open within the next thirty minutes.

It is unlikely that people who regularly float and are quite okay with it will quit without any concrete restrictions.

Here are some suggestions for the university: 1) create some kind of policy to limit the amount of time someone can float, 2) convert the mostly empty ‘D' lots to general use lots, or 3) lower the cost of ‘D' permits so more students will buy them.