Parking on campus at Marjon can add up to be quite an expensive ordeal, but is it unreasonable to ask students of the university to pay?
I caught up with Louie Bradford, a student who lives on campus who believes it is unfair to be charged.
He said: “if you are living on campus and having to spend a fiver every day that quickly adds up and that really isn’t right.”
Louie also added: “as a student you have to pay for rent, if you drive you have to pay for insurance, you’ve got to pay for food and obviously everything is quite expensive these days, so I think it is a bit out of order.”
I also asked Louie about the state of the current system in place and if it is something that needs addressing by the university.
He stated: “I think they should make it clear when you’re allowed to park.”
This comes after inconsistencies around the times that are deemed to be free parking.
“People say you can park here after 5pm or 6pm [for free], but then I got a ticket at 8pm so they need to make it more clear.”
I also spoke to student Tom Whittle who lives off campus, and has a long commute to university.
Tom said: “giving the current climate it would help, considering I spend about £40 upwards a week on diesel, I have to pay for the toll on the Tamar bridge as well. The least they could do is provide free parking for students who live far away from campus.”
I asked Tom about the possibility of getting a parking permit giving his circumstances.
To which he responded: “I was eligible for a permit and then I got an email saying that I have to pay £100 for it, which felt ridiculous, I have now lost the ability to get a permit because I have taken so long trying to coop up the £100.”
I asked if he felt unsupported by the university following the situation.
Tom confirmed this: “I feel like I’ve been taken for a mug.”
He also went on to say: “because it has taken me a couple of weeks to coop up the money to pay for this whole year permit, now I’m not eligible for one until next year.”
It is safe to say the students have a strong opinion on this subject and perhaps change is needed in order to offer further support for those who drive.