Six months after its creation, the parking task force has formally submitted its recommendations to U President Bernie Machen. The options include, among other things, a mass transit marketing campaign, carpooling and a parking fee increase?not exactly revolutionary ideas.

Unfortunately, the parking task force failed to consider one very viable solution?opening the A Pass option to the masses. There is no reason to continue the system that now exists?a parking hierarchy, where faculty and staff can park mere steps away from their campus destinations, while students make daily academic pilgrimages that absorb copious amounts of time and energy.

There is no real reason for restricting who can buy an A Pass. It is granted that students, for the most part, have more physical vigor than their faculty counterparts. However, many students have tight schedules which dictate their movements on campus almost down to the minute. Equal access to A lots will not only allow students to park closer to their classes, but will also beef up parking services’ profits.

When the demand for A Passes increases, as it naturally will if students have the option of purchasing them, parking services will have itself a tangible lesson in economics and can raise the prices. This could create the money to build a parking structure, something the task force suggests doing by 2006.

To implement this idea, student representatives on the parking advisory committee will have to multiply and raise their voices. This year only four students sit on the counsel of 16. The remaining 12 are faculty and staff.

If you wonder how the current parking lot system came to be, simply look at the gross imbalance on the committee.

Next year’s committee applications state that 15 students will be chosen for the committee. Let’s hope that this request comes to fruition.

Complaining about parking is, and will continue to be, a campus conversation staple. Change the conversation, start looking at the best options.

There might just be an answer after all.