(Photo courtesy of: UMass Lowell) “Snow creates dangerous conditions for everyone.”

Sarah Burnikell
Connector Editor

In the past month, there have been a few snowstorms that have made it hard to make it to campus and even walk on campus, but nothing is harder than trying to park and walk to class when the parking lot is covered in a thick sheet of snow and ice. After the back-to-back snowstorms in the early part of the semester, you would think that UMass Lowell would plow the parking lots, making it safe for the commuters and on-campus residents, but instead UMass Lowell just left it.

With the snow and layers of ice covering the parking lots, one of them, Riverview, was left without visible parking lines nor indication of where to drive. Commuters and other on-campus students with cars were unable to know where the parking spots were, making the lot dangerous, crammed and non-usable. With a lack of visible parking lines, many cars were parked in the areas that were meant for driving, making crashes a very high possibility.

With the parking lot in this condition, some physically disabled students were unable to make it through the parking lot safely, ultimately making it unsafe for them to get to class. After that, the snow ended up melting and turning into black ice and slush making it hard for individuals to walk to class and making it unsafe for these physically disabled students to go through it without slipping or getting stuck.

Even though the snow has now melted, there is still a huge pile of snow taking up a few parking spots and a designated driving area. This makes me wonder, what is UMass Lowell focusing on that is more important than the safety of their students during the winter months?