9A Testing the Hypothesis Part 2

Who: There are many people who do not have the need of additional campus parking despite the fact that they share a lot in common with people who do have the need. In general, the people with the need are University of Florida attendees who need to be able to travel to their classes and arrive on time with no impediments. However, there are many people who travel to the university and do not face this issue. For example, students who walk, bike, or skateboard to class to avoid parking at all. Another group of people who are outside the boundaries of the need are people who have decals that allow for better parking spaces, such as red 1.

What: There are a lot of aspects of campus parking that could distinguish certain needs from other. For example, is struggling to find parking on a football game day the same need as struggling to find parking in order to get to class on time? I would argue that it is not, because it is a different set of people that face these needs, and the consequences of not satisfying the needs are very different as well.

Why: I would say the cause of the need regardless of whether or not the person is inside or outside the boundary is the same. The cause all goes back to the fact that there is a limited amount of parking, there are only certain decals people can get, and there is strictly enforced parking rules.


Inside the boundary:

Who – people who travel to the university and need a place to park

What – a solution for the lack of parking available for people traveling to the university

Why – there are only a limited number of spots, there are strict parking rules, and there are a lot of people traveling to the university on a daily basis between students, faculty, and visitors.


Outside the boundary:

Who – people who do not come to the university at all, and people who travel to the university in other ways than a car or scooter such as a bus, walking, bicycle, or skateboard. Also people who travel to the university when parking is not an issue, such as strictly at night or on the weekends when most parking restrictions are lifted.

What – the need is not additional parking on campus, or even any parking at all as they do not utilize parking spots.

Alternate explanations – these individuals realize there is a problem and avoid this issue on purpose.


For the interviews I tried to find people who do not have the need for additional campus parking because they have found ways to get around that issue.

1. In my first interview I spoke to someone I know who uses a one wheel skateboard to travel to and from classes. He really enjoys this solution, as he said that it is efficient because the skateboard can go over 20 miles per hour, and since that is the speed limit on campus, driving a car or a scooter wouldn’t even be more beneficial in terms of speed. He also noted that the one wheel skateboard has a battery life that can take him up to 8 miles on a charge, and in basically every case, he would never be going further than that in one day just to travel between classes. Because of his investment in the one wheel skateboard (which he notes was a rather lofty one, and therefore a downside to this alternative method of travel) he does not have the need for campus parking despite being a University of Florida student.

2. The next person I interviewed is a University of Florida senior who uses a bicycle to travel basically everywhere. He said that he has been doing this since his freshman year and does not have a car or scooter at all in Gainesville. When asked if he considered this method an efficient alternative to driving, he said he does think so in terms of on campus parking. He said that because he does not have to struggle to park anywhere, there is no risk in taking his bicycle as long as he plans far enough ahead and is aware of how far he has to go before he leaves. He did note though, that in terms of all else besides parking directly on campus, a bicycle is not ideal. For visiting friends at their apartments or going to restaurants or stores, he would prefer to use a regular vehicle.

3. I interviewed a junior student who lives on campus and has a red 1 parking decal. A red 1 decal is for upperclassmen that live on campus. I chose to interview this student because when I was a freshman living on campus, I had a red 3 decal and was constantly wishing I could park in a red 1 decal spot. This made me wonder whether or not the red 1 student actually have an easier time parking as it appeared when I was a freshman. This student commented that she agrees that she has an easier time finding parking as an upperclassman living on campus because there are not very many people in this situation. She also commented that many students she knows that are upperclassmen and live on campus do not have a vehicle, which is why they live on campus in the first place, so that everything is very close.

4. I interviewed a friend of mine that does not have a car or a scooter and chooses to walk everywhere around campus. This student lives at Social28, which is in a pretty good location when it comes to walking around campus. She noted that it is slightly inconvenient having to walk to her sorority house twice a day, 5 days a week in order to eat lunch and dinner. She can confirm however that she has no need at all for campus parking because she does not have a vehicle, except when she rides with a friend somewhere and then the friend cannot find parking on campus.

5. The final student I interviewed is a freshman sibling of one of my friends. This student’s parents will not let him have a car in Gainesville until his junior year and thinks that scooters are too dangerous. This student chooses to take the bus as his primary mode of transportation and opts to stay around campus during the day even if he has hours of free time because he says it beats having to catch a bus back home just for an hour. Presently, this student does not have the need of additional campus parking but agreed that when he is able to have his car with him in Gainesville, he will have this need.