A buffer period for parking tickets would prevent busy or out-of-town students from being punished for parking.
TU should allow for a one-week buffer period at the beginning of the semester before ticketing improperly parked cars to allow students time to get their parking passes.
Currently, TU begins ticketing on the first Monday of the semester. Students and other TU affiliates register for and purchase their parking passes during the preceding semester or summer break. They then pick up their passes at the Parking and ID Office before the semester begins.
This can be tricky for out-of-town students who can’t make it to campus until the weekend before classes start. They then have to navigate class schedules during the first week of the semester to pick up their passes, hoping that they won’t get ticketed before they can return home and put the pass in their car window.
Students who are ticketed before they have a chance to get their pass can appeal the ticket; however, having to deal with an appeal is a nuisance and one more thing to stick on a to-do list.
These complications can be avoided by allowing a week-long buffer period before ticketing on campus. This gives all students the opportunity to collect their passes. (If you don’t have a pass after a week, it’s your own fault.)
Allowing a short buffer period will prevent students who couldn’t make it to campus early from getting slapped with an unjust and inconvenient ticket. I propose a week, but even just a couple extra days would be helpful for busy students trying to manage beginning-of-the-year responsibilities.
