<p>I'm an out-of-state freshman coming from the south about 9 1/2 hours away. A manageable driving distance, something I have done before (not to penn state but to places around 9-10 hours away by myself). I'm wondering if you guys think it's neccesary for me to have a car or not. I know freshman are not guaranteed parking, but for someone like me, that lives further away...would it be more convenient to have a car than not to. Does exploring state College basically require having one?</p>
<p>I had a car my junior year and on, and I can honestly tell you it is more of a burden than a benefit. I ended up being “that guy” with the car. The only good thing about it was being able to get around town and campus whenever I wanted.</p>
<p>But then there was paying for parking…or in my case, parking tickets. Getting ticketed on campus can be a hassle, because if you miss paying like one ticket, you get put on the tow list…and then one $15 ticket ends up costing you like $115 or worse.</p>
<p>If you plan on going home on a regular basis, it might be useful, but I wouldn’t let other people know u have a car unless they need to know, especially as a freshman.</p>
<p>Parking on campus is (i think) denied to Freshmen, so you would be unable to get a parking pass and would be relegated to off-campus parking. There are some people who keep their cars off campus during the week and then try to find on-campus parking for the weekend (some lots are open evenings, some are open evenings and weekends, some are permit-only 24-7). Parking on campus in an unallowed spot yields ridiculous fines - I think the “cheap” parking tickets are in the neighborhood of $30-50! So it would be difficult and probably quite expensive.</p>
<p>As to need… almost everything that a student is going to be interested in is downtown within walking distance, and just about everything is accessible by bus. You walk 90% of the time and take a bus when you want to do a trip to Wal-Mart, the mall, or some other big box store. The rare times when you really need a car, Zipcar or a taxi are going to be cheaper than the cost of maintaining a vehicle.</p>
<p>So skip it this year. Scope it out, figure out Sophomore housing and then you can see if and when you want to bring it up.</p>
<p>You can’t park on campus as a freshman but if you want a car you can easily find parking off campus via Craigslist. I was really glad to have a car. Then again, I absolutely hated taking buses … I would have never gone to Wal Mart or anything if I didn’t have a car. Also, it was great to be able to go home whenever I wanted on my own schedule rather than worrying about rides or bus schedules.</p>
<p>There is no Zipcar or similar service in State College as far as I know.</p>
<p>Some tips on being a parking scofflaw for anyone interested –</p>
<p>Parking tickets on campus were around $15 as of a year or two ago. You can get away with a lot more evenings/weekends than during weekdays. Certain areas and lots are better patrolled than others (there is a TON of variation in this). I had a car all four years and never had a PSU parking permit. I generally drove onto campus a couple times a week or so, usually in the evenings. On average, I got hit with a ticket or two a semester but considered it to be my relatively inexpensive parking fee for parking where I wanted on a regular basis.</p>
<ul>
<li><p>On campus: Never park in a “reserved 24 hours for permit # XXXXXX” or “reserved for HFS permit” or handicapped space – this is asking to be towed as specific individuals or groups of individuals won’t be happy that their space is taken and will call the police. While “Service permit only” spaces are never legal to park in (even evenings/nights/weekends) you don’t have an increased risk of being towed from them, just a higher chance of getting a ticket.</p></li>
<li><p>On campus: If you want to avoid the tow truck, parking in faculty/staff lots (color + letter names) is safe, parking in student lots (lots with numbers in the name) is less so. I wouldn’t illegally park in a student lot unless it was just for a few minutes with flashers.</p></li>
<li><p>On campus: You can park legitimately in many faculty/staff lots during evenings/nighttime. Read the sign posted at each lot. The rules vary lot by lot.</p></li>
<li><p>On campus: As long as you pay any tickets you receive right away and follow the tips above, you should never be towed.</p></li>
<li><p>On campus: Parking decks (garages) are not staffed after midnight on weekdays and at all on the weekends. In other words, if you are willing to take your car out only during these unstaffed times (requires planning ahead and inconvenience), you can get away with parking for free in the garages for quite a while. I have a friend who abused this one big time.</p></li>
<li><p>On campus: If you never register your car with Penn State (never get a permit) you are at an advantage. They can’t hit you with extra “parked in wrong area for permit” or “didn’t renew permit” tickets or get your student account in trouble for tickets this way.</p></li>
<li><p>Off campus: Don’t park illegally on private property off campus, ever. The tow trucks are vultures and WILL get you. I was towed twice from my own apartment complex despite having legitimate permits. Nobody has to call the tow truck on you – the tow trucks patrol (they have contracts with property owners) and have a strong financial incentive to tow you. They will tow you at 3 AM from an otherwise empty parking lot. I’ve seen a tow truck towing a food delivery car with its flashers on.</p></li>
<li><p>Off campus: Most of the streets downtown are no parking 2AM - 6AM… this is strongly enforced. If you break that rule you have better odds of having a ticket in the morning than not. The “3 hour parking without R-1 permit” rule in effect on certain residential streets downtown is far less well enforced.</p></li>
</ul>