Cornell UniversityParking Summary

Written by Mandy Kain and Radhika Arora

Mandy Kain and Radhika Arora

Hometown

Hewlett, N.Y., and Ithaca, N.Y.

View all previous student authors

With such a large campus, expect to walk long distances from your home to campus and from class to class. Ithaca is notorious for its hills, so you’ll be sure to get your morning exercise. While having a car is convenient, it is pretty much useless if you expect to use it primarily to drive to class. If you’re willing to shell out the cash for an expensive parking pass, then you will still be hard pressed to find a favorable place in the vicinity of one of your lecture classrooms. However, due to the somewhat isolated nature of Ithaca, having a car is useful for weekend trips.

Cornell faces a serious space crunch in regards to on-campus parking, and most students are displeased with the number of spaces available. While you may sometimes get away with parking in loading zones, wary officials will be quick to ticket your vehicle after 30 minutes, and don’t expect any mercy from Cornell’s transportation department. It’s possible, from time to time, to find spaces in pay lots by Willard Straight and Friedman Athletic Center. The downside is that you have a maximum parking time of two hours, and both lots are still a hike to class. Most students walk to class because of the problematic and expensive parking situation, and they choose to leave their cars in residential lots.