At San José State many students, particularly commuters, are grappling with a severe parking shortage.
The university provides 7,500 parking spots for over 32,000 students, according to the Parking Services web page.
SJSU provides parking in the North Garage, South Garage, West Garage and South Campus Garage, according to the same website.
For students to earn the chance to park on campus, the university provides parking permit purchases for the semester for $384, listed on the Parking Services website.
Yvette Morales, a first year transfer justice studies student, voiced her concerns about the parking permits.
“It’s incredibly frustrating to pay for a parking permit and still waste precious time searching for a spot,” Morales said. “I feel like I’m being charged for something that’s not even available.”
The parking crisis at SJSU has intensified in the start of the year as students struggle with overcrowded lots and limited availability, according to SJSU Parking Services.
“I bought a permit for the whole semester, thinking it would guarantee me a spot,” Morales said. But everyday, I’m circling the lots and often end up late to class because there’s no space.”
Jackson Demlew, a transfer finance student, is frustrated with not only the lack of parking spots but the space for the parking spots.
“It’s definitely a pain to spend so much time driving everywhere in the lot to park in my car in a narrow spot,” Demlew said.
Demlew said he typically parks in the North Garage and always looks at the parking garage fullness status.
“I would also look at the parking status online that shows that the garage’s are not entirely full, but when I get to the North Garage, it is pretty much full,” Demlew said. “The parking situation does get better overtime. As the semester went on, I managed to find parking on the top of the North Garage around noon.”
The university has listed out a warning that parking is typically full around 9:30 a.m. from Mondays through Thursdays, according to the SJSU Parking Status website.
The SJSU Parking Status website also shows how much space is left for each of the parking garages.
SJSU students can check the status before arriving on campus.
However, with students arriving early to find parking in the main garages, SJSU suggests that students should park at the off-campus garage building, South Campus Garage, according to another Parking Services document.
The South Campus Garage is located at 377 S. Seventh St. which is located across CEFCU Stadium.
This garage is a new four-story parking facility that provides 1,500 parking spaces to the campus parking impaction, according to a web page from Parking Services.
An Cao, a second year accounting student, feels there is an advantage when it comes to parking in the South Campus Garage.
“There is definitely an advantage that is nearly empty, but the bad part is that it will take more time for me to get to my class,” Cao said.
The university provides a free shuttle service from 7:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m to give a ride to and back from campus to the South Campus Garage, according to a parking notice from the university.
The shuttle buses will be located between Duncan Hall and the new South Campus Garage, according to a Parking Services webpage.
SJSU also suggests students to use the Transloc app which tracks down shuttle location and estimated time of arrival for each shuttle, according to a webpage from Parking Services.
Cao said she may find it a whole lot easier to find a spot, but it is difficult for her to get back to the South Campus Garage when she is finished with her classes on campus.
“I have a class that goes past 6 p.m. so I won’t be able to (take) the shuttle bus back,” Cao said.
Many students are in the same boat on navigating the parking over the course of the semester.
“This whole parking thing is all crazy and new for me as a transfer student. I hope this situation improves during my time here,” Morales said.
