Parents, please stay out of the parking lot

Every day before 7:45 a.m., I brace myself to enter the “war zone” that is the parking lot. From juniors taking senior spots to cars backing up into each other, terrible parking jobs to stampedes of students racing to class, it doesn’t seem that mornings could get any more chaotic than they already are.

Then factor in the parents.

Parents using the parking lot to drop off their children instead of the designated drop off area have been a nuisance to students for years. By entering the parking lot, parents not only increase congestion in the lot, but also slow down traffic, threaten pedestrian safety and cause upperclassmen to spend more time looking for a place to park.

The parking lot is a dangerous place already—add a crowd of parents to the chaos already caused by a combination of tight parking spaces, distracted pedestrians and careless teenage drivers, and the result is disastrous.

In the morning especially, when students do not expect many cars to be pulling out of spaces, parent presence in the parking lot not only slows down traffic and causes students to be late, but also can cause more accidents with more cars backing out of spaces at once.

It’s time the school set some rules straight.

We’re past the kindergarten days of hand holding and being escorted to class by tearful-eyed parents; by now, I would hope we all can agree that teenagers can be dropped off at school with no problem.

Yet some parents still feel the need to personally park, get out of their car, open the trunk and hug their precious children goodbye. Parents are coddling their children at a time when they should be fostering independence (I mean, come on, we’re in high school now).

Don’t get me wrong; I’m all for parent-child love, but can’t this be done somewhere other than right in the middle of the road as I’m scrambling to get to the science building for first period?

In addition, dozens of students are dropped off illegally on Saratoga-Sunnyvale Road before the turn onto Herriman Avenue every day. Unfortunately, some parents have chosen to save a few seconds of their day over safety and courtesy to others trying to get to school on time.

I’ve noticed this issue not only during the morning rush, but in the afternoon as well. Since I have a free third period, I often go home during the day on Tuesdays and Thursdays before coming back for seventh period at 1:35 p.m.

To my annoyance, however, the parking spaces often are so full with parents waiting for school to get out that I am forced to park in visitor or cafeteria staff parking. As soon as school gets out, I must wait minutes in my car for parents to clear the area before I can back out safely.

But parents are not solely to blame for parking lot congestion—students are part of the problem as well. It’s incredible how many students drive to school when they could walk or bike just as easily. If every student who lived nearby either walked, biked or carpooled, we could reduce both the level of chaos in the morning and our carbon footprint.

As the year continues and more sophomores and juniors begin to park on campus, the issue of finding parking spaces among a crowd of parent drivers will only become more apparent. It is crucial that parents realize the negative implications of their attempts to save time and adhere to the school’s designated dropoff rules.