Whether your commute time is 10 minutes or 100 minutes, commuting to school may seem daunting at first. However with careful planning and the perfect playlist, life as a commuter is actually not bad at all. As a matter of fact, I’ve come to appreciate and look forward to my half hour drives during the past year. Here are just a few tips for all my fellow commuters:
1. Sign up for parking text alerts: If you text "MBKUtextalerts" (all one word) to the number 33222, you can receive parking alerts, specifically notifying you when the main student parking lot is full. This way, you can go straight to the overflow parking lot instead of cycling through the main lot.
2. Overflow parking is really not that bad: When the main lot is full, there is an overflow parking lot just up State College. Lot G is located at Joeun Church (2001 N State College Blvd, Fullerton, CA 92831). A shuttle comes by every 15 minutes to pick up students and it only takes about 5 minutes to get to campus. The lot does close at 6:45PM every day, so be sure to get your car before the gates close! But overall, overflow parking is not bad at all. I’ve actually gotten much closer to some of my classmates through the small “shuttle talks” we’ve had.
3. Come (extra) early on exam and proficiency days: The main lot will fill up much quicker on test days, so plan to arrive much earlier on these days. Even if you haven’t received an alert notifying that the lot is full, if you are estimated to arrive about 10-15 minutes before the exam begins, chances are the lot is packed. My recommendation would be to go straight to the overflow parking instead of wasting time cycling through a full lot. Remember, the shuttle comes every 15 minutes so plan accordingly and do NOT be late to your exam!
4. Choose lab times that best fit your commute schedule: Do you want to avoid heavy traffic in the morning? You may want to avoid scheduling an 8AM lab. Or do you prefer avoiding rush hour at the end of the day? You may want to consider studying on campus a little longer or signing up for lab practice. It really depends what your commute looks like and when freeways get congested. In order to minimize your time on the road, your lab preferences can make a difference.
5. Driving = De-stressing: Though commuting may sound like a lot of extra planning, it is completely doable at MBKU. As a matter of fact, I actually look forward to my commute back home from school because it is the perfect time to de-stress. Whether it’s listening to music, podcasts, the news, or the radio there is no better time to catch up on your favorite playlist than on your commute to and from school.
Of course, these are all recommendations and some are solely based on my opinions. Over the weeks, you will all find methods that work best for your personal commute. But until then, I hope these tips help and happy safe driving!