Parking at UNC

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill
1

<p>My daughter would like to take her car back to school next semester. She is a freshman. Does anyone have any leads on purchasing a private parking spot near campus? I am assuming she can't get one on campus since she's a freshman. We did see one advertised 1/4 mile from the Carolina Inn for $400 per semester. This seems steep.</p>

<p>Also is there a web site that details the crime rates and vehicle thefts from the areas surrounding UNC? I understand that one side of campus borders a higher crime area. Thanks.</p>

2

<p>A friend's daughter rented a space a few years ago down in/near Southern Village (think that's the name). It's pretty far from campus, but the bus runs there. She used the car only for some weekend things, so it really didn't matter if it wasn't close to campus. If the bus runs to where the car is, you could look further away and they might be cheaper.</p>

3

<p>We pay 600 to park at school where my d goes so 400 per semester is 800 a year and that seems reasonable since she is not supposed to have one to begin with. my worry would be the safety since it is not patrolled or watched by school police.</p>

4

<p>My sister who is a senior at UNC told me her parking pass was $300 after I told her my high school parking pass was $25.</p>

5

<p>Well, this is just my 2 cents-- but unless she really wants to take a lot of trips to the beach or the mountains on the weekends, I honestly can't see why any freshman (or most students, for that matter) would want or need a car. Any place she'd ever need to go nearby would either be within walking or (free) bus distance. She could even get to Duke taking the (free) Robertson bus, which could also get her into the nicer shopping/eating parts of Durham, close to East Campus. I would never pay that amount, whether it's reasonable or not, to park a car off-campus, and especially with no security. I really can't imagine what one with do with a car-- again, except to take weekend trips. To my mind, not necessarily needing a car is a plus of going to a school that's in town (not isolated). I think it makes more sense just to rent a car if you want to get away for a weekend, but I guess you can't rent a car under age 21? But even getting back and forth to Greensboro, there's probably a bus service, or convenient train service (that probably runs through/picks up in Durham) and goes to Greensboro.</p>

<p>As an aside, I think we all need to get off this car dependence Americans seem to have. When gas rates get up to $6+ a gallon, maybe that will force people to see the light-- or not.</p>

6

<p>janie,</p>

<p>we are not all from nc and it is way more expensive and time consuming to get home for visits than it is if you are hitching a ride with a friend to a neighboring city.</p>

<p>please think before you make such comments. wanting your car at school does not make you a bad person. it gives you the freedom to go home to visit or go somewhere to get away from school for a day. nothing wrong with that.</p>

7

<p>re: higher crime area. I think you must be talking about Carrboro, but I wouldn't call it a high crime area. Pretty tame actually. It has more of a earthy 'granola' feel than the 'million dollar' drive coming into the UNC campus on Franklin from I-40. My d feels quite comfortable there actually (again, she is from Houston, so crime and safety are all relative...)</p>

<p>Just my 2 cents, but it is very difficult and can be downright frustrating to drive a car in the UNC campus area; the roads are narrow (historic hamlet thing) and pedestrians have the right of way. But, if having the car is strictly for commuting home on the weekends and your d doesn't mind having to catch a bus to get to her car, go for it. (I wouldn't encourage a freshman to make tooooo many visits home though...delays the 'plate-breaking' process.)</p>

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<p>Idmom, my son lives off campus and needs to use the car for some things--mainly grocery shopping and home depot or target runs. He drives as little as possible for the reasons you stated above and also he has found that many entrances to lots either have a tall curb or a steep slope and his car drags.</p>

<p>He gets around fine most days with the bicycle.</p>

9

<p>2007mom:</p>

<p>You're correct that not every student is from NC, but the OP who posed the question is (based on the location under the screen name). Consequently, in your estimation, her daughter can simply "hitch a ride with a friend to a neighboring city."</p>

<p>And while I don't think one is a "bad" person if he/she wants to have a car, (and never made that statement), I DO believe that we ALL need to rethink how we live our lives-- for now and for the future. It's probably too late for us (products of the 50's or 60's), but definitely not too late for younger people.</p>

<p>Aside from the larger issues of gas-guzzling cars, there's probably a good reason most universities don't allow freshmen to have cars. Also have to agree with the above posters that parking in Chapel Hill is almost non-existent, and traffic is pretty bad-- both in Chapel Hill and outside the town proper. Honestly, Chapel Hill doesn't need one more car there. Can you imagine if every student there-- all 17,000 undergraduates-- decided they really needed their "freedom" to simply "get away for a day?" What a disaster. </p>

<p>I can imagine that someone living off-campus might need one for grocery shopping, but I also believe that most students really do fine with a bike, or with putting one foot in front of the other and simply walking. </p>

<p>Lastly, about "hitching rides" -- there are plenty of students who do have cars. Remember car-pooling in the 70's? I do. I also remember alternate days when we were allowed to get gas, and long lines waiting for gas, and the insistence on car-pooling when driving to work, because gas was at a premium. Now people drive around, each person with his/her own car like it's 1950. Well, it's not, and I do think we need to adjust our lives accordingly. </p>

<p>I'm not saying one is a "bad" person-- just obviously unaware, and possibly with his/her head in the sand. A freshman having a car at college is a luxury we can all do without.</p>

<p>Again, just my 2 cents. I'll get off my soap box for now. ;)</p>