With 2,153 students roaming the halls and 550 paid student parking spots, the construction has introduced a significant challenge: parking. Tom Robbins, who was the associate principal until mid-September when he took a job as principal of Leander Middle School,  assigned parking spots has raised more questions than it has answered.

Junior Jeffry Moffitt expressed frustration with the system compared to last year’s system where students were free to park wherever they liked except for the painted senior spots.

 “A lot of people stole my parking spot,” Moffitt said. “There was one time I was there, and I just told them that they stole my spot and they just apologized and moved out of my spot.”

Moffitt also said the increased traffic has made it difficult to arrive at school on time. 

“The traffic was really bad, which made it hard to get into the school on time.”

Junior Garrett Lamm echoed these concerns.

 “This year, I’ve witnessed more accidents occur than I had seen last year.”

Leander police officer and school resource officer Bruce Trzeciak said a low amount of accidents happen here in the parking lot – two to three accidents per school year.

 Lamm attributed this to the new assigned spots, arguing that the lack of flexibility has led to congestion. 

“Last year, we didn’t have assigned spots,” Lamm said. “It was easier to park because there was more space in the lots compared to this year. It’s especially hard when I’m driving my dad’s Yukon, a wider and more lengthy vehicle”

Senior Blake Butler, unlike the other drivers, said he hasn’t really noticed any problems parking. 

“It’s gotten better but it takes forever to get in and out of the school,” Butler said. “People grew more accustomed to the traffic patterns because it was new at first, it took time for people to get used to it. Other than that, it is the perfect place to park my hellcat.”

A recurring theme among students is the congestion at the school’s four-way stop sign, coupled with the limited space in parking spots. These issues are contributing to delays and an increased number of accidents.