Carleton University students frustrated as school moves to restrict on-campus parking passes

A new parking policy at Carleton University means some students will no longer be allowed to buy a parking permit. CTV’s Camille Wilson reports.

Students are frustrated after Carleton University decided it would be cracking down on parking permits for some students.

Carleton says they will not issue passes to students who live within Ottawa and have access to OC Transpo, starting in September. It includes students living in Stittsville, Kanata, Orléans, and Manotick.

The only students able to get parking passes are those who reside outside of the OC Transpo service area.

Jacob Bronsther, a Carleton student who lives in Stittsville, says commuting to the university by car is convenient for his school, work and extra curriculars.

“Taking the city bus from my house to Carleton University is roughly a two-hour bus ride,” said Bronsther, “Carleton University didn’t think about students who may live in rural transit area.”

Carleton University says parking is full and recognizes the traffic congestion on campus. With the LRT now running to campus and access to busses, they are encouraging students to use transit.

“Following the permanent closure of the P9 parking garage, Carleton no longer has the capacity to meet historic levels of student parking permit demand,” Carleton University said in a statement to CTV News Ottawa.

The university says because of the high demand for parking on campus, students who live outside of Ottawa’s transit boundary will still need to purchase a U-Pass waiver permit from the school to park.

Students who live inside the OC Transpo service area and choose to drive will have to pay a minimum of $12 a day for parking, with some lots offering limited time to park.

Student Yazan Awad says he lives close by but loves the convenience of his car to get him around after classes.

“If I want to depend on the bus, I could be late for school. Leaving school, I’ll have to wait for that bus to leave as well. The whole day I’ll be adding an extra hour easily,” said Awad.

“I don’t think that OC Transpo is as efficient as it should be.”

Students are raising the concerns after paying for tuition, textbooks and living expenses for next semester.

“It’s a lot to ask for a student, especially when a lot of students are trying to make ends meet. Unfortunately $12 a day to park on campus is a lot for most students,” said Bronsther.

Bronsther said he was able to purchase a parking pass for around $560 for the whole year last year.

“When you impose something like that, you’re basically asking the people to pay more money, especially in times where the economy is really bad already,” said Awad.

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