Loss of parking at Langara a road to nowhere

Reported by Jacob Hoheisel

A shortage of parking spaces during peak hours means Langara students and staff can’t find parking, or must park off-campus, students say.

Lauren Rathbone, a first-year biology student, alternates between driving and taking the bus.

“If I am going to park [on campus], I try and plan it around when classes are emptying out so that lots of people will be leaving,” Rathbone said. “It can be kind of hard to find a parking spot.”

Most of the street parking around Langara is permit only, making finding a parking spot a waiting game for some.

The problem has been increasing since October when a row of parking spots in the underground lot were allocated for desks and office furniture storage.

As of publication, The Voice counted 20 spots used as storage.

Raymond Yeung, facilities services manager, said the desks came from renovations being done in the international education offices.

According to Yeung, the move is not permanent and should be finished within a month or so.

Yeung says that, according to security footage, the parking lots are at their peak between noon and 1:30 p.m.

There are 965 paid parking spots available on campus, and two official lots. The parking lots are patrolled by Impark, a private company that dominates private parking in Vancouver.

Second-year engineering student Mehar Chawla thinks that Langara should have monthly or semester parking pass options for students.

“I have tried monthly passes,” Chawla said. “But [in the long term] it’s more expensive than paying every day.”

Pay parking, though, isn’t just about revenue generation according to Yeung.

“It’s about managing how much the people who can take transit would be more incentivized to [do so] because they already have a U-pass, whereas the people who really need to drive will drive. If you make it free you’ll never find a spot on campus.”