All student drivers have experienced it—you’ve got only a few minutes to spare before class starts and you’re so close, but alas, a pesky parent has decided to drop their kid off. There goes your punctuality.
It seems that the issue of aggravating drop offs is becoming increasingly frequent as students are leaving their houses later in the mornings. But rather than accepting a tardy or two, a new issue has materialized: parents dropping their children off in weird and awkward locations.
The senior lot, the woods, the neighborhoods, in the middle of the street… it seems that drivers are becoming more creative with places to stop as the school year comes to a close. There must be a reason for these vehicles to do this despite the frequent fuss.
“Getting dropped across the street from school is more convenient with the traffic pattern because it is less congested,” said sophomore Abbie Bonk. “Plus, it’s healthier to walk farther.”
The neighborhoods are actually a decent option for drop offs since parents don’t hinder the morning trip for students as much.
“I get dropped off in the neighborhoods because my dad doesn’t like driving across street since it is a pain to get out of the kiss and ride area,” said senior Jody Briggs. “It’s more convenient than waiting in traffic and saves me five or 10 minutes in the morning.”
Not only do these students blend into the regular foot traffic of walking commuters, but they have the benefit of the safety and regularity of the crossing guard’s directions. But even so, not everyone can wait in this crowd to cross the street.
“The intersection where the crossing guard is always takes forever where the right and left lanes turn into the school,” said senior Amna Anjum. “My dad gets pissed at the wait so he just follows the buses in and drives to the senior lot. It’s more convenient since the stairs are so close and saves a lot of time on Wednesdays because the lot is almost empty anyways.  I know it’s annoying for student drivers since I’m just an extra car in the senior lot that shouldn’t be there—I apologize!”
Even though an extra car stopped in the parking lot can get annoying if students are in a time crunch, but even this isn’t the biggest issue. The infuriating scenario is when drivers are so close to reaching their destination, their beloved, personal parking spot, and there is already a car parked there.
“When someone is parked in my spot, I either have to park in someone else’s spot and cause the same problem or park by the baseball field; in that case I have to tell security and walk all the way back to my entrance,” said senior Elaine Stewart. “It just makes my day more complicated. People do it because it is easy and they don’t want to go out of their way. In reality, I paid $200 for the year for the expressed purpose of having a spot to park in for my late start! It’s happened three times already, so I’ve been thinking of putting a traffic cone in my spot just so people aren’t tempted.”
Taking up someone else’s spot is the sin of traffic etiquette. For those who have the propensity to park where they please, there are alternatives that don’t burden your peers.
“Coming from someone who didn’t pay $200, I’d probably park in the senior lot if I could take advantage of the empty spots,” said senior Carla Tenorio. “Honestly, I wouldn’t park in someone else’s spot unless I know the person isn’t going to be there for the day or if the spot is generally vacant. Right now, I get dropped off by the fence near the woods and trailers, since not many cars pass by there. Or there are visitor’s spots. Go park there!”