Rocky Mountain Parking Lot

The+senior+parking+lot

Van Dougherty

The senior parking lot

The parking lot at Rocky is becoming an increasingly crowded place.

With increased attendance and large junior and sophomore classes, the parking situation at Rocky will likely only get worse. As sophomores turn 16 and get their licenses, an increasing number of personal vehicles are now being used as transportation to and from school. This presents a problem for the students and administration because of the layout of the parking lot.

With only two entrances and exits, the flow out of the parking lot at lunch and after school is seriously hampered. Lucas Balbuena, a senior, said, “It took me 20 minutes to get out of the parking lot on a Friday.”

This poses a danger for students walking across the parking lot on the way to their cars or walking home. The flow of traffic is unpredictable and cars speed to get out of the parking lot in the small window provided by the north light on Shields.

The question for the administration is how to fix the issue?  Is it possible to open another exit onto Shields, or is it an issue of redesigning the parking lot completely?

Mr. Armstrong the campus security officer at Rocky said,”There is nothing we can do; there isn’t enough money to expand the parking lot.”

He continued to emphasize that what the administration continues to do is to educate students on safe driving through the safe driver program, as well as ticketing students who don’t follow the parking lot rules.

Sophomore, Josh Shell said, “The parking lot is more and more crowded….it’s harder and harder to find a good parking spot.” This issue is likely to get worse unless there is a drop in attendance or more students start utilizing the buses, riding their bikes, or carpooling. In the meantime, driving more safely and more efficiently can mitigate the overcrowding issue.