Despite the creation of two new parking lots on Duke University Road, students and employees alike reported frustration with the availability and location of parking for commuters.
The gravel-topped dirt perimeter lots have been consistently full after 9 a.m., commuters said, causing headaches for Duke community members who purchased the lots' $10 permit but typically arrive later in the day.
"For the past two weeks, only once or twice have I been able to get a spot, because I got here before 9," said Cat Saleeby, Trinity '00, who works in the Rare Book, Manuscript, and Special Collections section of Perkins Library. "But after 9 it's full."
Saleeby said she parked in the area when it was a dirt lot and is upset that now she has to purchase a permit and is less likely to find a spot.
"It's obvious that they have [oversold]," she said.
Catherine Reeve, director of transportation and parking services, said the situation should improve by the end of next week. She did not know the exact number of permits issued but said usage should decrease when off-campus undergraduate students are assigned Blue Zone permits off of a waitlist and graduate students receive permits from their school lotteries.
"We are confident that we will have a balance between supply and demand," Reeve wrote in an e-mail.
She added that the University has created a van service between the lots and Science Drive to help accommodate students and that overflow lots are available on N.C. 751 and at the Washington Duke Inn.
Still, many commuters expressed annoyance with the new parking alternative.
"All of last week, after 10:30 it was full and there was nowhere else to park," said senior Natasha Hanshaw, who parks on Swift Avenue or on East Campus when she cannot find a spot on Duke University Road.
She added that many of her friends living in the Belmont Apartments would rather walk to campus than attempt to utilize the parking spaces on Duke University Road.
Not all commuters are disgruntled by the parking situation; those arriving earlier have experienced little trouble finding a place to park.
"It's never full really," said Brian Fahey, a first year graduate student in the Pratt School of Engineering, who generally arrives before 9 a.m. "I'd rather park someplace closer, but I don't really mind the walk," he said.
First year environmental graduate student Takaharu Funatomi agreed. "It's a little far from the Nicholas School [of the Environment and Earth Sciences], but it's good exercise for me," he said. Funatomi added that the walk was a good way for him to become familiar with the campus.
Others said rather than walking, they take a bus that stops at the Duke University Road lots and runs to West Campus, but service is not always guaranteed.
"It took me today half an hour from the time I got to campus to get to Main West campus," Saleeby said. "That's ridiculous. There's got to be a better way."
Kirsten Cappel, a first-year student in the master of environmental management program, agreed, noting that although she lives close to campus, she allocates between 30 and 45 minutes to get from her residence to class. "I would take the bus but it stops running at 7 [p.m.] and sometimes I have class later," she said.
Cappel also listed safety issues as reasons for her concern. Before their transformation, the lots were generally considered unsafe and the University discouraged parking there. Police now patrol the lots between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m., and some lights have been installed.
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