Citrus College has more students than it has parking spots. There are approximately 3,250 parking spots with about 12,780 students, according to communitycollegereview.com.
Some students, such as Criminal Justice major and Navy veteran, Andria Sanders, said they were concerned with students parking in the handicap spots when they weren’t handicapped.
Sanders said she feels students on campus abuse the handicap parking.
“Parking is horrible at Citrus and to see people abusing the parking that is for [the] disabled is shameful,” Sanders said.
A few students decide to abuse the handicap parking, not every person who parks in a handicap is considered disabled.
“Vehicles using [handicap] spaces must display a valid DMV placard or temporary permit,” the Citrus College website said. “Drivers displaying placards or permits may park in any spaces, except red zones and motorcycle parking.”
The Citrus College website said the minimum fine for illegally parking in a disabled space is $330.
The Glendora Police Department comes onto the campus to give out parking tickets to violators who parked in handicap spots without placards.
“Those found to be misusing placards had them confiscated and received a misdemeanor citation that carried a $250 to $1,000 fine,” the Department of Campus Safety said in a tweet on March 3.
Sanders is not the only student who is angry about able-bodied students abusing the handicap parking.
Michelle Soriano, a nursing student who has rheumatoid arthritis, said people who don’t have a disability should not use the parking spots; she said it is a “sense of selfishness.”
Soriano also said students taking handicap spots who aren’t disabled could be causing an “inconvenience for those that already have trouble dealing with their disabilities.”
Sanders said a suggestion on how to fix the issue of non-handicap students abusing the handicap parking.
“I am by no means a doctor, and not all handicaps are noticeable, but I do feel that the school should give a special pass to people who are using the handicap parking once verified that they are the current handicapped owner,” Sanders said.
Students who have disabilities but don’t have a handicap place card can contact the DMV to start the process of getting one.
