Although a number of changes have been made to Rensselaer’s parking policies this semester, it appears unlikely that the current parking shortage will be improved in the near future, according to Rensselaer Department of Transportation officials.
The department has implemented restrictions on faculty parking and created the new Field House park-and-ride shuttle program, but "people are still willing to take the risk of getting a ticket because they want to park as closely as they can to the building in which they work or study," said Frick Hickey, associate director of Public Safety and director of the Rensselaer Department of Transportation.
It is also doubtful that additional parking spaces will be constructed on the main campus, according to Debbie Chura, department specialist of Parking Control.
The 122 percent oversubscription of RPI’s parking lots and the City of Troy’s crackdown on illegal parking activities inspired students to lobby last year for changes to be made in parking policies.
The park-and-ride program permits unrestricted parking in the Field House lot and allows students parking there to take a shuttle from the Field House lobby to the Rensselaer Union.
The shuttle, in operation weekdays from 6 am to 6 pm, runs every five minutes during peak morning, lunch, and late afternoon hours and every 10 minutes otherwise.
Permits that allow parking at the Field House cost $5 and must be purchased independently of other campus permits.
The new faculty policy bases its parking assignments on building work place and a point system using a combination of salary and seniority.
Faculty are either granted the authorization to park in core campus lots, in the Armory Lot, or in North Lot, with no interchange between lots.
