The Southern University Police Department is activelyenforcing all parking violations by way of tickets and towing when needed.
”We ticket andtow everyday,” said Ethel W. Smith, office coordinator for the Office ofTraffic and Parking for SUPD. Since August 30, more than 600 cars have beentowed on the SU campus.
“Students are not obeying their parking zones,” Smith said.This year the map designating parking areas was enlarged and color-coded toinform students where to park.
“The students park where they want to park,” she said. “Ifyou park in your assigned area you won’t be towed.”
Parking is assigned to commuters, north campus residents,south campus residents, law students, faculty and staff.
“Students parking in other parking lots should be expected,because there are not enough parking spaces, ” said Betty Thomas, from Crowleya sophomore history major.
“The towing is ridiculous they need to do something toextend parking, they want more students to come to Southern University, butthey don’t have anywhere to park,” she said.
All vehicles located on the Southern University campus arerequired to register and students are not complying and that is why they arebeing towed, according to Smith.
“There are quite a few students that have failed to registertheir cars, hundreds if not thousands, that have not registered,” she said.
Last school year approximately 8,000 students registeredtheir vehicles. This year about 5,000 vehicles are registered.
The registration fee increased this year from $16-$25 pervehicle.
“We made the recommendations and looked at a surveythroughout the state that was done on different schools and we wanted to be atthat average, along with ticket prices,” said SUPD Chief Dale Flowers.
“They (SUPD) say they tow on the third offense, butsometimes they tow before that. It seems like they are towing sometimes just tobe towing,” said Tremayne Baker a senior from Atlanta majoring in electricalengineering.
There is $50 fee to release all towed vehicles, this alongwith all other tickets can be deferred to school fees and is added to thebilling statements.
“Out of the 600 cars towed a good 90 percent choose to defertheir payments to their fees,” Smith said.
